Once upon a time, long before the advent of Internet, @ was a reclusive keyboard character who helped grocers multiply cost per item/pound. Otherwise, the low profile @ just sat quietly in the corner and hardly moved.

While the other key board members pushed ahead to become Capitals, the humble @ remained as is, no matter how it shifted. Rather than respect @ as head of the Alphabet, the arrogant Capitals ridiculed its hunched curvature and crumpled look. The Capitals capitalized on their external size and quantity, while the introspective @ focused on quality, purpose and direction.

All over the place
But, lo and behold, @ has now emerged as a central key figure in every email address. The ubiquitous @ rose from a mere scribble on the bottom of grocery bills to the top of all correspondence. With all due respect to the dedicated mail carriers plodding through rain and snow, @ delivers more efficiently than USPS and Fedex at the mere tap of a finger.

Global Attitude
Besides revolutionizing worldwide communications, the puny little @ has redefined space and location. Rather than brick and mortar on a certain street, city or country, today's virtual locations supersede borders and boundaries, unifying disparate time zones instantaneously and gathering them in from all corners of the earth.

As the great Spanish Jewish poet Yehuda Halevi wrote: "I am in the West, but my heart is in the East." Thousands of miles from little Isr@el, we are only a heartbeat away, yearning and aspiring for universal peace.

The Capitals chastise encircled Israel for daring to exist, refusing to recognize Jerusalem as our eternal Capital. Over the years, @ has suffered plenty from the Nays. But the day will come when the @ will offer direction to all the Capitals and lower cases, as Israel and the Jewish people will emerge as a "Light to the Nations." (Isaiah 60:3)

Where are YOU?
This message isn't only to our people as a whole, but is also a personal call to each individual in particular. Rosh Hashanah marks the Creation of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, who on their first day transgressed G-d's instruction by eating from the Tree of Life. G-d reproached Adam by calling out to him: "Ayeka? Where are You?" (Genesis 3:9)

G-d certainly knew where Adam was hiding, so why did He ask where he was?

The Chabad master R. Shneur Zalman of Liadi explained that G-d wasn't asking for Adam's coordinates as in location, but "Where are you at" in a spiritual way.

This poignant question is not answered by a GPS device. The Divine "Ayekah?" call echoes through time, prompting us to prioritize and choose from the many values that we juggle. Let us each carefully examine our accomplishments, where are we are in the number of days, hours, and minutes granted us to fulfil our life’s mission.

Each and every Mitzva we do helps Israel, because that's where it's at.