Tehilah la-Avodah: A Psalm in Praise of Meaningful Work

I just received a small slice of perfection in the form of a perfectly-worded question.  I had asked a fellow author, whom I recently friended on Facebook, whether he thought I should pursue a job opportunity about which I am ambivalent.  His reply was stunning, both in its simplicity and its brilliance.  He asked me: “What can you do to create a path for yourself so that you can do the work you love?”

I am so grateful for his reminder that I must embrace the process of my work. I am mindful of this lesson when I wear my potter’s jeans and use my artist’s brain. But sometimes —because of the pressure to achieve financial security from my writing—when I am wearing my writer’s lenses and using my author’s brain I simply forget to focus and live in the moment.  

So, now I am logging off to follow the path to the work that I love. I am responding to an urgent need— in this moment— to write in my notebook, because writing long-hand is a completely different experience and gets totally different results from composing at the computer keyboard. Then I will head to the basement to the glazing table, where more than a dozen pieces of pottery await my attention.   

Zeh hayom asah Adonai – nagilah v’nismikhah bo: Today is the day God created – let’s sing and rejoice on it!