Dear Friends,
Mi Sh’nichnas Adar, Marbim B’Simchah.
From the moment Adar begins, we should increase our joy.
This rabbinic mandate comes from the Gemara. But it raises an obvious question; can we really be mandated to be happy?
While I doubt one’s emotional state can be mandated or commanded, it can be encouraged. Science shows that there are several ways to increase one’s own happiness, and each can be derived in our Jewish community.
We can become happier by bringing joy to others. For this reason, in Adar, we practice Mishloach Manot, the sending of food gifts. You’d be amazed what a basket of fruits and Hamantaschen can do for a person—and even more amazed at the joy you find in making and delivering them. This is also the reason that paying for someone else’s coffee at the Drive-Thru is such a pleasing experience.
We can become happier by practicing gratitude. For this reason, the fourth grade learned the Modeh/Modah Ani* this month, teaching them that the first words they say in the morning can set an intention for the day. They also learned other blessings to help them feel gratitude throughout the day.
We can become happier by (re)connecting with our community, as we do weekly through Shabbat services on Friday nights, and mindfulness meditation and Torah study on Shabbat mornings.
Our own Tikkun students have noted in their podcast that something as simple as saying a kind word, holding a door for another, or offering to help—when we truly mean it—can not only increase the level of Tikkun Olam (reparation of the world) we practice, but even brighten our own days by reminding us that we are not alone.
For belly laughs, in Adar, we have Purim. At TBT, that means a SALTY Carnival with a spiel and a costume contest. It also means an evening with our adult friends which will include a spiel, Megillah chanting, a wine tasting, and food. Please join us on March 5, at Religious School, and on March 6, at 6 pm, at TBT for some very Jewish Joy!
May your Adar be filled with joy, Jewish and non. And may that joy spill into your every day.
*Modeh/Modah Ani is the morning prayer thanking God for our lives and God’s faith in us.
Kol Tuv,
Dr. Cassorla