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I ordered a new pair of eyeglasses this past week. Not only did I want to update the style of my glasses, but I noticed that my prescription probably needed to be updated. What surprised me about putting the glasses on with my new prescription was how much clearer things were that I thought were relatively clear. Details were lost on me that I had no idea were there until I was given the opportunity to refocus.  

Over time, not only should our visual acuity be checked, but so should our general perceptions. Details about people, situations and experiences can become blurry over time. The question is, “What are the eyeglasses of perception? What prescription needs to be adjusted that changes our focus on things that have lost their sharpness over time?” Sometimes we are jolted into re-evaluating our lives after suffering a loss or celebrating the blessing of new life, but those are monumental events that we certainly shouldn’t wait for to evaluate our day-to-day lives. No, Judaism has given us the tool, if only we commit ourselves to using it. That tool is Shabbat.

Shabbat is a time to focus on preciousness. Our relationships with people, with nature and our beliefs, the details of our lives, are all the focus of Shabbat. Even our relationship with time itself is brought into focus. Shabbat is the lens through which God asks us examine our lives and realize that those details are important, for that is where God resides. What a shame it would be to have them blurred just because we did not take the time to pay attention and refocus.

Wishing you each a Shabbat of joy and peace and of finding the precious details that may have gotten lost during your busy week,

Beth