The Great Sukkah Rescue

Learning how to build a sukkah the right way for Sukkot, and about the lulav and etrog.

Sukkot starts tomorrow when a gust of wind tips over the big city sukkah in the town square (nobody was inside, and everyone is safe). The Builder Crew cleans up, finds out the walls weren't braced or tied tight, and Rabbi Chabot, a kind and wise bot, arrives to teach them the rules as they rebuild it the right way: at least three walls sturdy enough to stand in a normal wind (even toy bricks work), not too short and not too tall, and a roof covering called schach made of cut plants like branches and bamboo, with more shade than sun, room to see the stars, and no tree or roof above it. Remixa decorates it, the crew shares their first holiday meal inside, Rabbi Chabot shares that the sukkah reminds us of the clouds of glory that protected the Israelites in the desert, and the next morning he leads the four kinds: the lulav (palm branch) bound with myrtle and willow, held together with the etrog (citron), with a blessing, then waved in all six directions. Chag Sameach!

Try it at home: Next Sukkot, visit a sukkah with a grown-up and check: how many walls does it have, and can you see the stars through the schach?

About 5 minutes · Chabotville Episode 2