Tu B'Shvat

“We breathe in what the trees breathe out

And the trees breathe in what we breathe out.

So we breathe each other into life.”

- Rabbi Arthur Waskow

From the darkness of Tevet

we come to the joy of Shevat.

and the full moon on Tu B'Shvat,

the new year of the trees.

Not hidden but emanating bright light,

we celebrate

as the sap is rising

and the fruit is beginning to ripen.

And He made the letter Tzadik

King over taste.

Good flavor is the holy spark revealed!

Tu B'Shvat celebrates the potential of potential

and our bond with the trees.

We depend on each other,

linked on earth and in heaven.

What is that potential in us?

What fruits do we bring forth, what blessings?

Think of the priestly blessing--

holy and sanctified by the Infinite One, The Miraculous.

May all our blessings be holy.

We draw the sparks of brokenness

and make them holy.

The sap is rising from deep in the tree's roots,

mirrored by the divine thoughts and feelings

coming down from on High,

thoughts of hope and promise,

peace and abundance, new songs,

and the creativity in our souls, our roots.

Shi-vee-tee Havayah, l'negdee, tameed.

I place the Compassionate One before me

at all times, the Transcendant One.

In Shevat as in every month of the Jewish calendar,

may my mind and heart be guided by the Love of Havayah.