Pine Warbler : The Give and Take
This is a Pine Warbler. I received his photo on a beautiful morning. I choose that word, “received” very consciously. I watched him at breakfast. Birds are just stirring into wakefulness. Song is in the air. The sun emerges, and light is its gentlest. It is a time of expectation, excitement, and reception. What birds will I see? Who can say? Does it matter??? Everything around me is giving - giving sound, light, warmth, joy, and inspiration. And even as I absorb, I am powerfully infused with a desire to give: to write, to teach, to transform the seemingly jumbled elements I experience around me into a coherent(?) offering. The more I take from around me, the more I’m compelled - lovingly - to give back.
Our week is Divinely divided into two distinct parts. There’s a time for creating and giving, and there is a time for savoring and receiving. Six days we labor, and on Shabbat we step back to appreciate the value of what we, our community, and HaShem have created. Imagine if we lived in just half the week. Deprived of creativity, what would we be? The tools we fashion and what we make largely define our differentiation from all other animals. Deprived of a time to appreciate, what would be the value of our making? Reflecting on our work elevates us above robotic automatons endlessly repeating unconscious tasks. We most fully manifest our Divinely-given nature when we both create and appreciate, give and take.
Shabbat and the secular days compose each week’s rhythm. But what about the less clearly delineated aspects of life? A healthy balance between give and take can be as challenging to find as it is vital. Our work makes demands. Social needs are unlimited. Even our families and intimate pairings can drain us at times. Can we shift perspective? Can we instead find gratification and fulfillment in our giving such that we simultaneously “take” even while we give? Can we shift from “spending” to “investing” time? The receipt of this Warbler’s breakfast scene is what energized me to offer this drash. Shabbat teaches that giving and taking aren’t zero-sum but are instead a Divine gift which creates unfettered abundance.