It’s here! It’s here! Today is the first day of the Hebrew month of Elul, and once again, Rabbi Phyllis Sommer has generously provided us with a template for reflection and growth. The High Holy Days are just a month away, and there is lots of spiritual work to be done.
This is my fourth year of participating in this project. In the last two years, I have put in links to previous iterations and tried consciously to say something different and innovative. I doubt whether I always succeeded, but this time I am going to do things differently again.
5777 is going to be the year in which I turn 55, G-d willing. Rather than winding down, I feel like my life is just beginning – I am healthier, stronger and more focused than I’ve been in many years. I am very excited about the journey I am currently on, and I am going to write my #BlogElul posts from that perspective. I won’t be talking about my products – I’ll be talking about my growth and development as I work on becoming the coach and entrepreneur I was always meant to be.
So today’s theme is Prepare. To quote the great scientist Dr. Louis Pasteur, fortune favours the prepared mind.
He was talking about scientific observation, but I believe that this statement can be applied more generally to life. While everyone can use “a little luck”, it’s amazing how luck seems to lend itself to those who are already doing the hard work, already pushing the Universe towards their desire. Their mind is prepared to seize upon the opportunity, to recognise G-d’s gift when it presents itself to them.
The world is full of wonderful things, happenstance and luck, chance meetings and things that just happen. The prepared mind allows us to be open to those gifts, to notice what is going on, to connect with that random stranger who just happens to be the person we didn’t even know we were looking for. An open, inquisitive attitude towards the world will greatly enhance our chance of good fortune.
Let us all use this time to prepare our minds for all the wonderful gifts and opportunities that are going to come our way in 5777.