Harmonious Endurance, 24 Days Omer 5782

Today is twenty-four days, which is three weeks and three days of the Omer, in the year 5782. תפארת שבנצח, Tiferet ShebeNetzach, Harmonious Endurance. Do you allow yourself time everyday to sink into your soul? How does the Eternal speak to you?

Moving Closer to My Destiny

Yesterday, I completed the journey of my master's thesis, "Inner Growth, Human Relationships, and Reaching Towards God: The Concurrent Development of Ethics and Mysticism in Early Modern Jewish Texts." I presented a twenty-one minute introduction to the focus of my scholarly interests: how Jewish wisdom develops across time. For me, the Jewish intellectual organism is a combination of ethics, mysticism, and Halakhah. One cannot be understood without the development of the other three aspects of Jewish thought. While ethical mysticism is my focus, my rabbinical school training has given me a profound appreciation for the power of The Way, Halakhah.

Choose Integrated Living

I am beyond grateful to my colleagues and professors for the gift of their wisdom. I am also grateful for the medical professionals who have helped my family and me live into this moment. I'm not a medical professional, so I can't tell you whether a soul doctor or a physical doctor is needed. I can tell you that my life is enriched by appreciating the necessity and limitations of each form of human knowledge. May we all regain trust in professionals and may we sink deeply into our own journeys.

Reconnect With Someone You Left Behind

Maybe I'm the only one who experienced this, but I've had epochs in my life where different people were intensely important. I've lost touch with many of them. I have never regretted reconnecting with someone. See if the same is true for you. Perhaps the person you most need to connect with is yourself.

Remember that the stories we tell about our lives are a refraction of the lived experience. If your story is holding you back, gently thank it for helping you reach this day and then let it go. I cannot tell you how many personal narratives I had to let go in order to grow into myself.

Embrace Your Passion

I don't believe everyone has to quit their day job and focus on hustling their passion into a viable business. I also know we live fuller lives when we fully embrace our passions. Did you give up drawing? Do you have a model kit waiting to be built? Do you think fondly of a previous decade when you would get wrapped up in books instead of endlessly scrolling social media? Whatever it is, try to let your passion back into your life.

Personally, I am gently trying to wean myself from my phone. I need to be less connected to the internet in order to be fully present to my life. It's a daily struggle. It's also why I am not forcing myself to write every meditation on the night that an Omer count begins. I'm prioritizing riding my stationary bike over this. Find something that makes your heart race and free yourself from the bonds of the present. Sink into the luscious vitality of eternity.