Chai Mitzvah’s Plotz Plot

By Nina Fondiller Woldin

Wandering across the country visiting family and Chai Mitzvah friends in my 19-foot RV, I can’t help but draw the comparison between my journey and that of our ancestors in their Sukkot.

I can’t help but draw the comparison between my journey
and that of our ancestors in their Sukkot.

In addition to representing wandering and homelessness*, the sukkah also reminds us of Abraham welcoming the three angels.**  The door to a sukkah is always open! I can relate – moving from place to place, with a limited number of possessions, but also stopping to connect with people I love.

Sitting in the sukkah reminds us to recognize the fragility of life, and accept that which is difficult, and for me, on this trip, to recognize with gratitude sukkat shalom, a shelter of peace, as I see my wonderful grown children, adorable grandchildren, and 93-year-old mother. I am also so lucky to connect with thoughtful, spiritual, Chai Mitzvah participants and facilitators who enrich my life every day!

Traveling in my mobile sukkah during this period of transition to the new year, I came across an amazing place to visit in Holbrook AZ and I want to share it with you. The place is called The Plotz Plot.For those going through a life transition, it’s a place to leave behind a piece of your former self.

I came across an amazing place to visit in Holbrook AZ and I want to share it with you.
The place is called The Plotz Plot.

In 2020, to honor outgoing Atlas Obscura CEO David Plotz and his five years of service to the company, his colleagues purchased 1.18 acres of land in the middle of the Arizona desert on eBay. Located a mile from Arizona’s Petrified Forest National Park, and 2,500 feet from historic Route 66, the Plotz Plot is a pilgrimage site for people navigating major life transitions of all kinds. Those who find themselves in the midst of a personal transformation go to the Plotz Plot to cast off a symbol of their old lives, and leave it behind as a memento inside this growing museum. All are welcome to contribute.

This thoughtful spot invited me to think about not only my transitions, but those of all those I’ve met on my journey – from my youngest grandson (2 and 1/2 years old, plans to be a “super good guy” in the coming year) to our wonderful participants, to my 93 year old mother. I thought about what I would leave at the Plotz Plot, and would love to know what you would leave. What will you leave behind as you go forward in the new year? Please leave your thoughts below in the Chai Mitzvah Plotz Plot!

* Pesikta d’Rav Kahana 28
** Numbers Rabbah 14

2 responses to “Chai Mitzvah’s Plotz Plot”

1. John says:

   October 19, 2022 at 7:36 pm

   A very interesting question.
   After thinking about this for a while, I decided to leave behind a pair of my old pants.

   Since turning vegan, I’ve lost a total of 77 pounds, and 12 inches from my waist.

   I’m leaving them behind not just because I look much better, but emotionally and spirituality I feel I’m a better person.

   I never liked that old John, but the new John I can work on.

   Reply
2. Jennifer Wolinsky Saber says:

   October 23, 2022 at 2:42 am

   I’m thinking ahead about my daughter who is a senior in high school. What am I going to leave behind as I transition from being a parent of a child to becoming a parent of an adult child next year when she leaves for college?

   Her school lunchbox filled with jokes on tiny slips of paper. From elementary school through middle school and onto high school, I have included a joke in her lunchbox every single day. Whether she read it to herself, shared with her lunch table, or used it to wrap her gum in, it’s a memento to leave behind but a memory to carry forward with.

   Reply