Fast and Slow

It's hard to get around that the central part of my day was Yom Kippur fasting. Any number of things could have happened today, and yet, they would all be colored by the fact that I wasn't eating, and was doing whatever I could all day to avoid thinking about eating.

There are those who would argue that such a thing is archaic--a remnant of prior observance, and a waste of time and energy. Yet, while I can't say I was happy about not eating, I can say that it gave me a different focus, and sometimes in life, a shift in focus is really all you need.

Fasting meant that at least until later in the day, the kitchen was not the focus of my path at home (I, in fact, avoided the kitchen, so as not to invite any unnecessary temptation). My path, then, focused more on thinking than on eating, more on sustaining conversations than on sustaining a full stomach.

Fasting also meant that entertaining company was not about offering food, but about offering communal activity. In a household where communal often happens only around the dining table, it was nice to see a focus on talking to each other, not necessarily over bowls of pasta.

Fasting meant a focus on connection. Connection to an often unstated past, in which fasting and observance were unquestioned. Connection to a community also trying to find its way through the day. Connection to generations trying to make the tradition their own.

And fasting meant slowing down--accepting that there would be none of the normal running around and thinking weeks and months ahead. And sometimes slowing down is all it really takes to shift your focus.

By nighttime, when fasting was done, focus had shifted again--to entertaining with food, to visiting the kitchen (often), and to planning ahead for the week and beyond. Yet, I can't help but think that the focus change, just for the day of fasting, will continue to color things, even if just for a few days. Whether it's because of tradition, or physical discomfort, or a sense of community,  perhaps this day of fasting will help us take things a little more slowly, with a little different focus.