The Fourth Month: Tevet

First thing's first. You may be asking, "Shira, isn't Tevet nearly 2/3rds over with?" To that I would say, "Yes! It surely is."

I will not make excuses. I dropped the ball, y'all!

To illustrate my feelings on still sending this out super duper late, I will tell you a story.

I was on the swim team up until high school. I wasn't very fast. Even so, I still went to the swim meets and swam with intense mediocrity. The swimmers that excelled always impressed me, though. There was this one swimmer, an older boy, who normally placed very high in each race he swam in.

At one summer swim meet, I overheard the coach tell him, "I know backstroke isn't your favorite, but we need people to fill the lanes. Go swim."

This normally very precise and focused swimmer ambled over to the pool with a visibly bad attitude. He swam the 200 meters of backstroke and still placed 8th, but displayed such unimpressive sportsmanship. So unimpressive that I am still telling this story 12 years later.

This swimmer knew he wouldn't place 1st, so he decided he wouldn't try at all. I don't believe in this! I really truly believe in always trying your best and following through, whether or not you think you're going to "look good."

I am telling this anecdote, because I, too, didn't like that I wasn't going to look good by sending this out so late.

I had two options -

1) flop my way through the 200 meter backstroke (aka, give up on having a regular podcast after 2 1/2 years of actually following through)

2) suck it up and not look my best, but be consistent

My pet peeve is when other people aren't consistent or can't follow-through. And my level of distaste to others when they express this personality trait can't begin to compare to the level of distaste I have for MYSELF when I express this personality trait.

I don't think anyone's spiritual wellness is solely coming from this email, but in case it is.... HERE WE GO! 20 days late!!

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A quick idea about Tevet. Tevet's name comes from the word "tov" - good. But the most memorable thing, at least to me, about Tevet is that in it, we have Asara b'Tevet, the 10th of Tevet (over 10 days ago ... lol). Asara b'Tevet is a fast day where we mark the beginning of the Babylonian siege of Jerusalem, which led to the eventual exile of the Jewish people from the Land of Israel. How is this month, one of the darkest and coldest months of the year, a month that's good?

Good is subjective. It's in the eye of the beholder. There is an energy of transformation in Tevet - taking something negative and viewing it in whatever positive light you can. I will give a small, tiny, insignificant example that has nothing to do with a particular virus that is surging again:

Example: It's getting dark super early, but now it's not weird when I eat dinner at 5 PM. Perspective, you know?

Cont’d…

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