“Mama said there’ll be days like this,
There’ll be days like this, mama said.
Mama said there’ll be days like this
There’ll be days like this, my mama said.”
I think the Shirelles were referring to that lovesick feeling many of us get when thinking about our crush. The butterflies, the nervous giggles, an inability to focus on anything else. Or the aching for something we don’t yet have.
These same lyrics reverberate as we wander through these endlessly long days. Interminable days that fold into an uncontrollable time that ironically feels like a run-away train. Such odd, strange feelings. Time speeding up while the day itself feels everlasting. Listening to more unknowns, trying to plan with big question marks, watching the clock tick by until the bliss of bedtime comes at last.
Mama said there’ll be days like this … but how many more days?
Perhaps, this moment takes a reframing. That is the genius of faith. To hold what is graspable and examine what lies within our hands. Meaning, stop focusing on that which is indefatigable. The many, many days before us. Staring into that kind of abyss likely will cause us to drown.
Hayom. Instead, focus on Hayom.
During the High Holy Days, we pray the following words, “Strengthen us, today. Bless us today.” Today. Right now. This very moment. God, give me the strength to get through today.
What is my purpose today? Ask yourself this very question.
Today, my purpose is to be a patient mom. An understanding wife. An attentive daughter. A rabbi that opens her heart to her congregants. Not all those things may happen exactly the way I plan, but I will just focus on today. One meal at a time, one lesson at a time, one smile, one frown, one tantrum, one embrace. I may start planting seeds for a better tomorrow … but one day at a time.
Mama said there’ll be days like this … so I will hold on to this very day.
Hayom. God, strengthen us today so that we may be prepared to face tomorrow.
Today lies within my hands. What a special gift.
Shabbat shalom.
