#BlogElul 5777: Prepare

I wasn’t prepared for how much I would love the gym. Yes, that’s correct – I love the gym.

In March – on a whim – I began working out twice a week with a trainer. It is like nothing I have ever done in my life before, and has helped restore my faith in some basic tenets of the world:

• Working out is, as is much in life, hard, but if it was easy, everyone would do it.
• Hard work has its rewards. In this case, they include improved fitness, better health, positive feedback, a willingness to stretch my body – and my mind – to learn new skills, and an overall grounding that, little by little, is spilling over into other parts of my life.

I was wholly unprepared for any of these rewards and I am both surprised and grateful to have them. Although it may not be possible to prepare for such unexpected blessings, may we all experience them in 5778.

Inspired by Ima on (and off) the Bima , this #BlogElul post is one in a series marking the days of the Hebrew month of Elul, which precede the Jewish High Holidays and traditionally serve as a time of reflection and spiritual preparation for the new year.