Elul 2/August 28
Seeing the Universe in a Grape
One of my favorite practices is to lead people in eating a silent lunch. I will ensure the meal is a simple platter of fruit and invite everyone to pick up a grape and look at it. “If you look closely,” I say, “you can see that this grape came from a vine in a field, and that the vine would not have come into existence without the sun and the soil and the wind and the rain.” I spend a few minutes expanding upon this, talking about the importance of the farmer tending the field and picking the grapes; of the truck driver who brought the grape to the store; of the people who built and work in the store. I allow the holders of the grapes to see that the whole universe exists in the grape. Then I invite them to spend the next thirty minutes eating in silence and looking closely at what they are eating.
Can you take a moment during the day and engage in thoughtful deliberation about something had previously been trivial?
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