Chores

This shabbat I truly rested from a ny housework, which meant that there was plenty awaiting me this Sunday. I set to work first thing in the morning, getting some laundry ready and found a morning blessing melody swirling in my head. Taking that hint, I started on the blessings and made it about halfway through before I got interrupted by a baby needing attention.

Before long, I was folding laundry and resumed the blessings, now in the late morning. Adding blessings to chores not only made the chores go more easily but even reminded me that there are blessings in the folding of laundry, in the opportunity to do something mindfully with care and attention.

Baruch atah adonai eloheinu chey ha'olamim malbish asurim. Blessed are You, the Compassionate, our God, who clothes the naked. 

Blessed are You, the Everpresent, Our God, who brings holiness to the mundane.

As a bonus, I also got to look out the window at the trees as I folded. Just when I sang oter yisrael betifarah...who crowns Israel with splendor, out came the sun for the first time today, setting the turning leaves aglow.

On Creation

On this Shabbat morning, I led meditation at our synagogue. I try to have the meditation draw from the week's parsha: Beresheit this week, the very first one! In the Beginning...

To begin, we changed six of the morning blessings in moving meditation, a practice that I began five years ago. It was fun today to pick out the ones that related to this day and to the parsha.

Baruch atah adonai eloheinu chey ha'olamim....

...hama'avir sheynah me'etnah utnumah me'afapay...the Awakener, Our God, who removes sleep from my eyes and slumber from my eyelids...a must-do for me, especially these days with a teething baby!

...hanoteyn lesechvi vinah lehavchin beyn yom uveyn laylah...the Provident, Our God, who gives the bird of dawn discernment to tell day from night...and then there was day and then there was night, the first day.

...malbish arumim...the Compassionate, Our God, who clothes the naked...always one of my favorites and felt important on this cool morning, the first morning of this autumn when we needed to turn on the heat and be sure to wear warm clothes.

...zokeyf kefufim...the Helping Hand, Our God, who staightens the bent...when we do the motions along with the opening words of the blessings, we start by bending our knees and end by touching the floor, and in the course of our movement we go from bent to straight twice...it feels right to bless that movement.

...oter yisrael betifarah...the Beautiful, Our  God, who crowns Israel with splendor...such splendor and beauty out the windows on another crisp, sparkling fall day where many colored leaves are highlighted by golden light.

...she'asani betzalmo...the Imageless, Our God, who made me in your image...another one straight out the parsha and one whose meaning never ceases to be deeply profound.

We continued from there to a seated meditation where we drew on Shefa Gold's teachings in her book, Torah Journeys, receiving with gratitude the gift of our lives, of our part in creation. (Second spiritual challenge and practice.)

Gratitude

On this Friday morning, I sang the blessings while cooking in the kitchen, Asa busy too on the floor by my feet. This is the best kind of busywork, and I am aware of busy-ness. The business of doing what we are meant to do. Working with our hands and feet, singing and cooing as we work, glad for the companionship but each independent.

The bright morning sun shines on our work, and I am aware of the bountiful nature of this time, grateful for the harvest that brings us our food, grateful for the growing boy so curious about our world, grateful for the light of the sun, grateful for my voice and the music it conveys, grateful for the words of my tradition. Blessed, oh so blessed.

Baruch atah adonai eloheinu chey ha'olamim she'asa li kol tzork. Blessed are You, the Generous, Our God, Life of all the Worlds, who acts for all my needs.

Blessed are you, the Bountiful, our God, who grants us great abundance.

Big Blue Sky

I am not sure what my mood was this morning, but as soon as I got outside on a quintessential crisp fall day, I could not help but be in an upbeat mood.

A brisk, joyful melody quickly emerged, and I sang it with my full voice. Singing something so upbeat, in a major key but yet in Hebrew always seems like a little bit of a surprise to me. I ask myself if I can really do that, and then I smile as I go ahead and belt it out!

Baruch atah adonai eloheynu chey ha-olamim oter yisrael betifarah. Blessed are You, the Beautiful, Our God, Life of all the Worlds, who crowns Israel with splendor.

Blessed are You, the Glorious our God, who gives us a big bright, clear blue sky!

Rhythms

This morning Asa and I were able to wake slowly, drifting between sleep and awake in gentle waves. It was a sweet time of snuggles and awareness of how fleeting this time is with my precious baby boy.

A little later, our day in full swing, I drove to Caratunk for a rainy walk with the windshield wipers going in a steady rhythm. My recitation of the morning blessings took on a definite rhythm to match the wipers drumbeat.

Baruch atah adonai eloheinu chey haolamim roka ha'aretz al ha mayyim. Blessed are You, the Fashioner, Our God, Life of All the Worlds, who stretches forth the earth upon the waters.

Blessed are You, the Source of Patterns, Our God, whose rhythms and beats give structure to our lives.