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This week's Torah portion might inspire you to think a bit more about giving thanks. However, it wouldn't be because there was SO MUCH of it in our parashah, quite the contrary. Despite the plethora
of prayers and pray-ers in the Torah reading, there are two things that are especially lacking: Gratitude and Happiness. Jacob asks God for help and guidance, bakashot, and both Leah and Rachel sing praise to God with many hoda'ot. Yet the tone of everyone's prayer is self-interest, jealousy, competition, and righteous indignation. We read about love and hate, friendship and rivalry, and through it all, no one seems to feel joy or happiness... and perhaps it's directly linked to the equal absence of gratitude.
In a recent New York Times article, entitled 'A Serving of Gratitude May Save the Day,' John Tierney writes about research that shows how increased gratitude in our lives may lead to 'better health, sounder sleep, less anxiety and depression, higher long-term satisfaction with life and kinder behavior toward others."
It's a fabulous article meant to help you navigate the 'challenges' of the holiday of Thanksgiving, but it's also an opportunity to take stock of your entire life, to really think about how much gratitude you feel or express on a daily or weekly basis. Sometimes we imagine that the keys to healthier, better living involve monumental shifts in how we live our lives. But what if it really could be something as simple as saying 'Thank You' once or twice more each day? I encourage you to read the NY Times article and maybe even print it out and bring to your Thanksgiving table. Couldn't be worse than talking politics post-election with your crazy relatives, could it?
It's a fabulous article meant to help you navigate the 'challenges' of the holiday of Thanksgiving, but it's also an opportunity to take stock of your entire life, to really think about how much gratitude you feel or express on a daily or weekly basis. Sometimes we imagine that the keys to healthier, better living involve monumental shifts in how we live our lives. But what if it really could be something as simple as saying 'Thank You' once or twice more each day? I encourage you to read the NY Times article and maybe even print it out and bring to your Thanksgiving table. Couldn't be worse than talking politics post-election with your crazy relatives, could it?
The story of Jacob and his family highlights another essential lesson.
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Photos in this blog post:
1. CC image courtesy *dans on Flickr
2.CC image courtesy of 2Shutter on Flickr
3. CC image courtesy of ConstructionDealMkting on Flickr
4. Image courtesy of Rabbi Gerber's iPad. Handwriting unknown (unless you think it looks nice, then it was me...)
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