Emerging from Our Big Sleep

It’s time to wake up to The New Moon of Pisces. 

Every month in the kabbalistic calendar was created with the essence of one of the letters of the Hebrew alphabet. By understanding the letter of the month, we can better understand its gifts. Pisces was created with the letter kuf, which is the only letter of the alphabet that goes below the baseline and sets Pisces apart from all other months. Just as the kuf extends downward, below the surface, we can get to the root of our challenges and change them at their source. 

Because of this ability to go directly to the source, Pisces is a powerful month and one with myriad opportunities for new blessings and greater abundance. There’s no trick, but there is one requirement: we have to be ‘awake’ enough to see everything. Awake—not in the sense of the opposite of sleep, but awakened, aware, and alert. 

Questions for greater wakefulness:

Do I need to change paths? (in work, health, habits, or relationships)

What area(s) of my life are on auto-pilot? (parenting or friendships perhaps)

What am I becoming more of? (am I becoming more of the person I’d like to be?)

I love this kind of introspection; in fact, I have made it a daily practice. Because every single day can and should be filled with more joy, blessings, and fulfillment than the day before. And if it isn’t, then you have the power to fix it, to transform darkness into light, to change what doesn’t serve us or bring us joy. We can recognize that no matter what’s happening—especially when it’s sad, disappointing, frustrating, scares, or angers us—instead of blaming circumstances, luck, or other people, we can instead connect to the knowledge that everything that happens to us is for our best. It is not random; it is an opportunity for greater sharing and personal transformation. 

This is all for the best. I trust the Creator and the process of life. – Rav Berg

Life will always have its challenges. All that we experience—even if it comes in the form of chaos or something we don’t want—is ultimately for our greatest good and will bring us closer to our true potential. 

That level of trust and certainty make it so that even big challenges (lifequakes is a term I like) don’t affect us. Instead, we greet challenges as opportunities for growth with curiosity and openness.

Many of you know that my second child, Josh, was diagnosed with Down Syndrome shortly after birth. The doctors spent a great deal of time talking about what that might mean for him physically, as well as what to expect developmentally as he grew. They spent so much time underscoring who Josh wouldn’t be that I was awash in fears of his future, in uncertainty in myself and…in him. 

I went through several different stages of grief before coming through the other side fully awakened to the gift of this beautiful soul that is my son Josh. Of course, he wasn’t a punishment or a problem to be solved. At that moment, I discovered I had to change my core beliefs and redefine what I thought it meant to be the mother of a special-needs child. Once I changed my limiting core beliefs, my feelings of gratitude and appreciation were and are so powerful. Josh’s diagnosis was a lifequake, but the experience and my subsequent process were completely transformational. 

This is all to say that we are all going to have challenges, and we are going to experience some sadness, and we will get through it to the other side. But, having certainty in the process will shorten the time it takes you to get through it.

Take a look below the surface of the challenges you’ve been facing lately. Is there a silver lining in these pandemic-driven months? Has homeschooling, while challenging, given you a deeper understanding of your child’s learning style and who they are at their core—something you might never have seen or recognized? Have you witnessed the extraordinary strength, good humor, and resilience of a family member who has been locked down for months? Have your pre-pandemic goals shifted in a positive way? Has the past year left you less judgmental? Stronger? Changed your opinion about what constitutes a meaningful life? I wager the last year has changed us all. 

Rethink Moment: This month, if you find yourself frustrated by a situation, “wake” yourself up.  Instead of reacting in anger or frustration, take a step backward. Ask yourself, “What is the opportunity for me here? What do I need to learn?”  How can you rethink an experience you’re dealing with now?