THE MONTH OF CHESHVAN

Navigating Transitions, Elevating the Fall

by Rav Pinson

As the season is changing and it’s getting colder, and as we are transitioning into the winter, Cheshvan is a perfect time to think about transitions in general, and especially about the continuous changes in our lives.

Life is forever changing. Every day that we live we are getting older. We are actually, if you think about it, transitioning continually, moment by moment. Broadly speaking, we move from being a child to an adult, and with Hashem’s help, to a spouse, a parent and grandparent. Many of the people in our lives, from when we were children, start passing away as we age. Change is really the only constant in life.

During Cheshvan, it’s part of our spiritual work to take the time and consider, how do we navigate through the transitions of our lives? Perhaps we experienced the loss of a loved one or the birth of a child, or a change in our job over the last year. Think about which changes were of your own doing and which were circumstantial. How did you respond to the challenges that presented themselves? When dramatic change occurs in your life, do you feel ‘knocked down’? Does a time of doubt or ‘formlessness’ cause you to collapse, even just subtly? If so, what do you do, or can you do, to empower yourself, find your balance, and pick yourself back up? These are the guiding questions of Cheshvan.

Don’t Give Up, Just Give!

We should never give up or despair.We should never let our doubts drag us down and drown us in the Ayin of our transitional periods.

No matter how difficult the past,each day presents us with new possibilities for positive change.
Often the best way to get up, after you have fallen into doubt or depression, is to stop focusing on yourself and try to help another who is in need….