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Prepent 5774: Day 30, Looking in the Mirror

Taking a few moments to really connect with ourselves in the new year

by
Amichai Lau-Lavie
September 06, 2013
(Tablet Magazine)
(Tablet Magazine)

Journey into the High Holidays with Amichai Lau-Lavie, founder of Storahtelling and the spiritual leader of Lab/Shul. It’s a daily dose of inspiration to get you focused and ready for the new year, featuring daily intentions, simple tasks, and tools for living better.

Prepent Day 30: Stare at yourself in the mirror for 60 seconds: face to face, eye to eye. No judgment, just love. This is the holy of holies.

You are as you are: created in a divine image, with sacred DNA, wrinkles and all—beautiful. It’s often difficult to look into the eyes of others; how often do we take the time to do this privately? Checking in, looking ourselves in the eye.

During these new days we often go to a body of water for the taslich ritual, to shed our past through the throwing of crumbs. While there, pause to find your reflection in the water, and look upon it with forgiveness, compassion, and love. Let your gaze ripple gently outward until you meet the eyes of another, either reflected in the water or standing next to you, and smile.

Welcome to the first Sabbath of this new year, which we embrace with our eyes open to the simple and the sacred in our lives. Shabbat shalom!

Follow along with the Scroll’s daily Prepent series here.

Amichai Lau-Lavie is the founder of Storahtelling, and the spiritual leader of Lab/Shul, an emerging New York City congregation.