Shvat 5780 שבט

Monday, January 27, 2020.  Once again we are out in the snow, bundled against the cold, thinking of sap rising in the trees, and olive and almond buds, in far-away middle eastern lands.  Here in the Great Lakes we’re having a warmish winter, and are perhaps a little better situated to appreciate Shvat, whose name refers to the driving, lashing rain characteristic of this season in Israel.  In biblical times, warming soil and plentiful rain provided good conditions for planting of the first vegetables and legumes.  And of course, our holiday in this month, Tu B’Shvat, celebrates the budding of trees, and hope for the cycle of winter turning once again toward spring. We’ve made it through the darkest months of the year, and now the light is slowly returning. The area of energy for the month of Shvat is “inner renewal”.  As the sap rises in the trees, and inhabitants of the earth become aware of the growing light – so we grow in our spirits and bodies, from the inside out, nourished by the divine and benevolent universe, which brings us rain and light.

In our daily prayerbook, we start the morning with a wonderful prayer which reminds us of the bounty of the universe and its sustaining role in our lives:

ירויון מדשן ביתך, ונחל עדניך תשקם.

כי עמך מקור חיים, באורך נראה אור.

Yirv’yun mideshen beitecha; v’nachal adaneicha tashkem.

Ki imcha m’kor chaim;  b’orcha nir’eh or.

 [We] are nourished from the riches of Your house; Give drink to [us] from Your Edenic stream.

For with You is the fountain of life; by Your light we see light. – from Psalm 36*

As we are walking in the woods this month, and at Tu B’Shvat, celebrating the trees among which we live, may we be reminded that, like the trees and all other inhabitants of the world, we are nourished by Earth’s water, air and fertile soil.  May this New Year for Trees bring renewed energy to care for the World that sustains us, and inspires us as the light of spring grows. –Kirby

We will celebrate Tu B’Shvat with a walking meditation on the morning of Monday, February 10.  The next Rosh Chodesh walking meditation will be the first of Adar, Wednesday, February 26. Both meetings will be at 7:30 am.  Contact us for location.  Rain or snow or shine!

 *Note that in the original Psalm, these verses are written in the third person, referring to humans (literally “children of Adam”) as “they” and “them”.  I have changed to the first person (“we” and “us”) in this brief excerpt.