And Now, for the Roots

T

he Jewish year has three periods of teshuvah. The first, Elul-Tishrei time, is for actions. Shovevim (from Parshas Shemos through Mishpatim) is the second. Even after an aveirah is removed through teshuvah, it leaves a stain on the soul, which we have the power to cleanse during Shovevim. The third period of teshuvah is during Sefirah, when we go all the way to the roots of our actions: to our middos.

Each week during Sefirah, we focus on a different middah. For example, during the first week, the middah is chesed, lovingkindness. Did we sin during the year because of a lack of love or generosity? Or perhaps just the opposite; we weren’t discriminating enough and loved something or someone we shouldn’t have. Each week we dig deeper, giving our middos a much needed pruning.

Something I do every day that’s slowly changing me in a real way

In an Elul issue of Family First, I read Sarah Chana Radcliff’s advice about keeping track of our growth by marking down on a calendar the number of times we made an effort. Someone sent in a letter about a bracelet with a bead that could be moved a notch to keep track of things.

For many years I suffered from obsessive thoughts. I ordered a bracelet and began moving the bead each time I refused to entertain an obsessive thought. In the beginning, I moved my bead over 30 times a day. As my ability to ignore these thoughts grew stronger, I moved the bead much less. As a result of this, I began feeling like a strong, capable person who had power over my mental and emotional health.