It's All a Gift (Though it May Not Seem Like it at First Glance)

One of the most difficult obligations placed on us is the duty to "bless the bad just as we bless the good" (Berachoth 54a). But how do we remain loving when faced with rejection? How do we find joy when faced with loss, especially when the losses seem absurd, meaningless and unfair? Why does Hashem give us these events? And is He asking the impossible of us in requiring that we bless them? In truth, every Jew has infinite spiritual potential which can be brought out only by the specific events which Hashem has chosen for each of us. However, as Rabbi Tarfon said, "The day is short, the task is great, the workers [all of us] are lazy, the reward is great and the Master is insistent" (Avoth 2:15). What rouses us from apathy, despair and laziness, and forces us to develop this potential? It is precisely the effort to find the hidden meaning and goodness in the midst of stressful events that enables us to discover our own inner G-dliness. The need to give meaning to pain is uniquely human. It's All a Gift provides a methodology which enables us to apply the wisdom of Torah to every aspect of our daily lives, whether trivial or tragic. Using examples from her private practice and her popular EMETT groups, Mrs. Adahan shows us how her system of "spiritual aerobics" can bring greater tranquility and joy into everyone's life.
by Miriam Adahan