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Prevent burnout with deep breathing exercises

One of the hardest parts of a LEAN IN attitude is knowing when to pull back. As humans we
need to feel, we need to express our feelings, we need to connect and we need to rest.

The great Rebbe Nachman of Breslov taught; Mastering the spiritual journey means being an
expert at “running and returning”.

In some ways that means knowing when it’s time to engage and when it’s time to slow down,
but it also means knowing that different times, and different days, entail using different spiritual
muscles. The master of the spiritual path recognizes and celebrates whichever muscles they are
working; those of service & action or those of humility & self-care.

So, if you’re feeling a little burnt out today, you’re not alone.

Take a deep breath and celebrate the small steps.

When we change our attitude, how we feel is perfect.

Right now things seem scary to a lot of people. The virus is scary. The measures we need to
take to stem the tide of infection is scary. The economic consequences are scary. The panicked
reactions of others is maybe the scariest.

We can’t panic though. The experts say that. The Government says that. The religious leaders
say that.

How do we do that though? How can we not feel the way we feel?
LEAN IN.

To change how we feel we don’t have to change the feeling or the circumstance, thats
impossible, but, we can change our attitude. The panic and fear that we are experiencing is not
our Feeling it is how we are processing our feelings furled by our attitude.
What we are feeling is what it’s like to be vulnerable, what it’s like when things are constantly
shifting, what it’s like when we realize how little control we have.
Sometimes we translate that feeling into despair and into panic. When we do that, when we
translate real vulnerability as fear, our human reaction is to seek ways of banishing the panic.
When this doesn’t work, because there isn’t enough toilet paper in the world to take away
vulnerability, we only spiral further into fear and into panic.
Instead, we can focus on honoring and respecting our vulnerability as legitimate, we can LEAN
IN to our feeling. We can respond to what is and how we feel inside in a way that is focused on
thriving and surviving. We can reach out in prayer to express our vulnerability. We can reach out
to others, or write down for ourselves, to process how we feel. Then, the best part, we can
reach out to others to let them know they are less vulnerable than they might feel, because they
are not alone, they are not the only ones who feel the way they do.

When we do this, when we LEAN IN to the feeling, shifting our focus to nurturing our emotional
self, to adulting our feelings, to responding responsibly to the facts on the ground, and then
most importantly to helping those we can, we don’t need to change how we feel because how
we feel is perfect.

No matter how you slice it, The Universe/Human History/G-d, and maybe thats the same thing,
is giving us the opportunity to “lean-in” to the most intimate parts of our lives. To spend time with
ourselves and with our families.
This is a blessing.

Of course times are scary, and Coronavirus is a curse for the many that are sick. YET, walking
the spiritual path means accepting the nuance of reality. Things can be both good and bad, and
anything that happens provides opportunity for usefulness.

By acknowledging the danger this poses to so many and heeding the advice of our medical
professionals we enhance the safety and security of those most in danger. Staying home when
its appropriate is a kindness. Staying home and taking time to pray for those in need is a pure
Kindness.

The opportunity to practice that is also a blessing .
One curse and two blessings. Let’s focus today on the blessings

“The Courage to change the things we can” means the courage to make mistakes
Spiritual Reference is one of the most important blessings in life. Spiritual Reference is what
develops as we face a particular challenge and succeed. A sense of confidence which grows as
we find out that we can make it, that we have the skills and support needed to thrive.
As success builds on success, a feeling of self-esteem starts to take root. We suddenly have a
willingness, and even excitement, to reach out for help, to practice skills and to engage
whatever comes our way.

But then something comes that we haven’t faced before. We have skills but we aren’t sure
which ones to use, or how to utilize them. Those we rely on maybe don’t have experience or
expertise in this area. We are left in uncharted territory.

Thats where Courage comes in. The courage to try even when we aren’t sure how it will work
out. The courage to try even though we know we may falter or struggle. The courage to do it
wrong enough times so that we can learn to do it right.

Right now we are all lacking Spiritual Reference. We are gonna do some stuff well and some
stuff less then well. All we can do is jump in, try some new things and try some old things in new
ways.

Maybe, just maybe, there is an abundance of growth for all of us just over the ridge. Maybe this
situation, and our place in it, is exactly the way it’s supposed to be.

As G-d commanded Joshua when the Jewish People were poised to enter the the promised
land – Chazak Ve’Amatz – Be Strong and Courageous. Strong in suppressing the negativity of
resistance to something new or trying agin when it doesn’t work out as well as we hoped, and
Courageous in doing things the best way we can and know how.

Weekdays and Shabbos: Action versus Being

As the weekend begins to unfold, we are being offered what may be a once in a lifetime, maybe
once in creation, chance to accept the gift of being – Kabbalat Shabbat in the truest sense.

Normally, when we complete a week of creative action, we are commanded to sanctify that
effort by stepping back to be mindful of why we do all that we do in the first place. This helps to
draw in an awareness that at our core we are not human doings, we are human beings. That
our essence is to be, and only then, as beings, to take actions that reflect our truth.

This Shabbos, the one that immediately precedes Pesach, is called Shabbos Hagadol, the great
shabbat. Perhaps this year we have been blessed with the Greatest Shabbos – the fullest
expression of shabbos. A truthier truth then we have ever experienced before, maybe greater
than anyone ever before. This shabbos did not emerge out of six days of work, but rather from
waiting and hoping to get back to work. In some ways that might make it seem like this shabbos
is somehow less shabbos, less an expression of our meaningfulness.

Yet perhaps it is even more, because this shabbos is not about stepping back, “an abstaining
from work”, it is solely a proactive Leaning In to the essence of our being.

So, just for today, let us take in the air of this Shabbos Hagadol – the great shabbos. Let us
Breath Deep, taking in the treasure and abundance being offered.