Oy? Try Ah!
I was full swing into a bout of shingles (I don't wish it on anyone!). I had finally dozed off towards morning after endless hours of extreme pain and discomfort. I was jarred from my sleep by some noise outside our building. When I realized it was morning and I had barely gotten any sleep, I groaned "Oy". The exclamation I had just uttered kind of shocked me. What a negative way to face the new day! I found myself talking to myself (as I often do), "MashaFaygel, is that a way to start your day? Oy? Why not try Ah!? Why Oy?!"
And so it was that I lay in bed trying out in repetition the sounds, 'oy' and 'ah'. You have to try it. Try it right now. Feel what happens when you say 'oy' and feel the difference with 'ah'. It's crazy, isn't it? I'll tell you what happened to me. When I said 'oy', memories of weeks of pain, itching, burning, and nerve jolts that filled my days and nights came flooding through my mind and body. Then, in a snap I said 'ah' and my mind was flooded with gratitude for being granted another day of life, another day of hope, another day closer to complete healing. It was literally like flipping a switch on and off.
I realized then how much control we really have over our thoughts; and how those thoughts affect the body and spirit. And then with full intent I recited the verse I would normally have recited upon awakening: מודה אני לפניך מלך חי וקיים שהחזרת בי נשמתי בחמלה רבה אמונתיך (I thank You, living and eternal King, for restoring my soul to me with mercy; Your faithfulness is abundant).
It's been a few days since then. My nights have, thank G-d, returned to ones of restful sleep. The pain is gone as is much of the itching and the rash. While the symptoms fade, what remains is the lesson of 'Ah'. It was such a strong lesson that I find myself turning the switch on and off during my day. The 'Oy' continues to keep me focusing on the negative while the 'Ah' offers me an opportunity to step out of my small thinking and spread my mind wide open to see the blessings.
Let's be honest; this idea is not a new one. Yet, here is a tool granted me to help jump the hurdles whether they be physical or spiritual.
It's really very simple. It's My Simple Emes; and I share it with you.
May all our days (and nights) be filled with Ah moments,
MashaFaygel