Life is a precious gift, intended to be used to the fullest. If we refuse to improve ourselves, if we settle for mediocrity, we become one of the living dead, a person who is squandering the gift of life. With this insight, we get a better understanding of repentance. Repentance is not merely a response to sin, but rather a war against mediocrity. It is the process of changing attitudes, of no longer accepting the status quo.
Repentance demands spiritual growth and improvement, no matter what level a person is at.
Throughout the year, we live with the status quo, sleepwalking through our daily routines. The period between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur is a time when we wake up from bad habits and stale routines, and reach for greatness. To live with the status quo is to live with mediocrity. And mediocrity isn't an option. Tifereth Beth David Jerusalem near Montreal.