Why we should all be planting now & Shabbat Shalom!
People are discovering new things these days. Our one-year-old Esther discovered Zoom and demands to get in on the action. Our kids discovered distance-learning, while I, as a parent, discovered up-close learning...
On one of my mid-day bike rides with the kids this week, we passed a neighbor planting a garden, so the kids wanted to know why we don't plant a garden too. I said I would, but unfortunately, the poor little seeds wouldn't stand a chance of blossoming or surviving under our care :)
Speaking of seeds - this week's double Torah portions are Tazria, opening with mitzvot pertaining to the seed, or birth of new a new life. The second portion is Metzorah, discussing the conduct of an individual in quarantine due to a supernatural skin related ailment called Tzaraat.
So, who came up with the idea of lumping these two portions with such opposite themes? An unfortunate ailment with something as miraculous as birth?
But if you observe the process of a seed's growth, it all makes sense. First, it is 'quarantined' into the ground, which must be terribly uncomfortable, then it begins to plotz and feel like it's losing its identity. But that's precisely when the miraculous growth and birth takes place.
This could be the story of our lives. This ailment could be the beginning of the birth of a newer, incomparably better version of ourselves and the world. If we seize this opportunity while the world's noise and distraction are shut down, and listen to and tend to our deep core, then with some patience, faith, and cultivating improved behaviors and habits, we can be on the verge of the birth of a new horizon!