Sometimes I feel like a fraud writing about “learning” topics because that’s not something that feels natural to me right now. What I mean is, I’m having a difficult time starting and certainly sticking with learning a sefer, book, etc. I also have a hard time sitting through shiurim and haven’t gone to any in a while.
This week I had lunch with a friend and she shared that she has been learning Chovos Halevavos Shaar Habitachon and it helps her a lot. I learned this sefer a bit years ago with M’nucha Bialik’s teleconference, and also with a friend. In more recent years I haven’t learned much about emunah and bitachon; I was finding that popular books and teleconferences tended to lean a lot on miracle stories and guarantees of success if you have enough emunah or bitachon, and this message doesn’t resonate with me. But talking to my friend reminded me that I can learn what and the way I need to learn.
Maybe a question to ask if you struggle with learning, like I do, is, what do you need now in order to keep going? (As opposed to what you think you should learn or would be nice to learn or that other people are learning.) What could help you feel encouraged, alive, or interested?
For some it might be revisiting a favorite subject from school days. For others it might be learning nice ideas about tefillah, the Yomim Tovim, or Shabbos. For some it might be approaching a totally new topic or style of learning that gives you a sense of newness and possibility. Others might want to revisit and review “the basics” (i.e. Yedios Klalios. Not a bad idea for me.) Some might want a lesson-a-day format, others might want a self-directed deep dive into a topic of interest. You might like practical halacha, or deep concepts from machshava. The Torah is vast, endless – what is it you need right now?
And with that – wishing you a good Shabbos and a wonderful Yom Tov!
(Photo credit: Natalie Bond/Pexels)
