My weekends are often spent catching up on sleep, running errands and socializing with friends. This weekend, I decided to change it up a bit.

Shabbat Shalom

Following a wonderful Shabbat pot luck dinner with friends, I woke up early and headed up north to cottage country.  I was thrilled to be among great friends, the peace of the wilderness and it was an added bonus that we celebrated Tu Bishvat together. On Shabbat we ate 15 species of fruit and grains that had different levels of edibility (edible skin, edible pit, inedible skin, inedible pit) which acts as a metaphor for different personality types and we blessed  four cups of wine representative of the seasons.      I was inaccessible via phone, there was no Facebook activity and we were treated with 20+ centimetres of snow.  While I often complain that I have chosen to settle in such a climate, I was thrilled to have the opportunity to wear snowpants, sled down the driveway and catch snowflakes on my tongue. It helped that I was among young children and toddlers.

Showered with snow

Seasons are important. They force us into different clothing, they encourage us to participate in exciting activities and they help instill an appreciation for our surroundings and our religious observances and celebrations.

Tu Bishvat is right around the corner – this weekend to be exact.  I’m watching the snow fall and the temperature hover around -15C and I can’t say I’m in a very ‘happy birthday trees’ mood.

This week alone I had 3 of my children home with the flu and my husband suspected every tickle in his nose… Last night I got an email from my sons’ school informing us that within 5 days they will be moving downtown creating a 1.5 hour commute (one way) for my sons – 3 hours every day back and forth.  To deal with this I needed to cancel one of the ongoing Mussar groups that meets weekly.  Half my office is heated while the other half has a less efficient system so ultimately right now we can choose to sit in a t-shirt or file papers in our coats and mitts – ok, maybe not that bad but it feels that bad…

Anyone wishing a tree a happy birthday yet?

And then I realized how easy it is to just put off the Jewish stuff.  It’s only trees, right?  I mean, Rosh Hashannah, Yom Kippur, Pesach – that’s major Jewishness, but trees??  How easy to just lose myself in fixing vents, finding schools and chicken souping a cold.  But ultimately, I don’t want to choose being the person who copes and bandaids.

Being Jewish in every moment means I can choose meaning over chores.  Not to say I won’t fix the vents or find the schools but now I am motivated to do that so I get them out of the way because understanding Tu Bishvat, celebrating nature and trees, reminding myself of my place within the whole – that’s way beyond the chicken soup.

So on Tu Bishvat I will indeed stand outside, heavily layered in winter clothing, lean on a tree, close my eyes and think of Torah and Trees of Knowledge and Trees of Life. Genesis clearly tells us that within hours of creation, we headed to a tree and changed the world forever.  We’re forever connected to the trees, it’s probably worth a thought one day a year.

Have a great Tu Bishvat!