It is a common custom on Rosh Hashana to eat symbolic foods, asking Hashem to provide us with blessings for the new year related to each food. For example, many have the custom to eat a pomegranate, so that God will give us as many opportunities for mitzvot as there are seeds in a pomegranate. One similar minhag (custom) quoted by the Rama (Rabbi Moshe Isserles, 583:2) is to avoid eating egozim (nuts), because the Gematriya (numerical value) of the Hebrew word "egoz" is equal to that of "cheit" (sin). We want to avoid sins on the Day of Judgement, so the custom developed to avoid eating things that even hint to sinning!

While this is a lovely idea, Rabbi Avigdor Nevenzahl of Jerusalem explains that there is another word with the same Gematriya as "cheit" - "cheit"! Yes, it is nice to avoid eating nuts on Rosh Hashana because of the symbolic meaning, but it is even more important to avoid actually doing a sin on Rosh Hashana! These signs and symbols are a fun way to enhance our experience of the holiday, but let's not forget the essence of the day - reflection on our year and positive steps for change in our future. 

While we are all surely going to enjoy three whole days of delicious food, community gatherings, and time with family, let's be extra careful to make sure we enjoy all of the holiday elements in the ideal Jewish fashion. We can be grateful to Hashem for the food with brachot (blessings), we can try to reach out to a neighbor we don't know very well and make a new friend, and we can be careful to avoid Lashon Hara (gossip) at our holiday meals, just to name a few ideas. Through showing Hashem we are trying to be our best self on the Day of Judgement, we can merit a year filled with blessings and mitzvot - whether or not we eat nuts!

L'Shana Tova Tikatevu V'Techatemu, May we all be inscribed in the Book of Life.