Back in high school, I loved every second of playing for the school basketball team. Despite my lack of innate talent, I always laid everything I had on the floor and constantly tried to become a better player. But during senior year, I went for a fast break down the court and made a careless move that resulted in a torn ACL.

I’ll never forget how after the operation, the surgeon visited my hospital room to tell me that the procedure was successful. He also nonchalantly mentioned to me that during the surgery, he had noticed that my bones had stopped growing, meaning that this would be my height for the rest of my life.

To this day, I’m not resentful about being “only” 5’11 and often joke to my wife how I’m really “5’12.” But when I think back to that day in the hospital, it still bothers me for some reason. It wasn’t until years later, when I was older, that I realized why:

I couldn’t handle that someone had set a limitation on my growth. That this was it, this was final, and this is what I was going to be for the rest of my life. And I realized that I never want to stop growing.

This message has always been core to who I am. I never want to limit the kind of person I am able to become as a human being, as a Jew, as a father and husband, and as the CEO of this organization.

On Yom Kippur, we spend a lot of time focusing on our mistakes. Most of them were careless and don’t really represent who we are. We try our best to make amends, and sometimes it’s painful. But if you think that because of your past mistakes you are forever limited as a person, you’re missing the point. Because unlike my torn ACL, it’s precisely through this healing process that we grow even more.

On this year’s Day of Atonement starting tomorrow night and Wednesday, I look forward to embracing a better part of myself who never feels limited to who I am today. No matter the injuries that come on the court of life, I aim to be a better player tomorrow.

Wishing you a New Year 5783 filled with only health, happiness, and growth!