shavuote

sivan 7 5781

just the other day was shavuote, the jewish festival of weeks, one of the three pilgrimage holidays. this holiday celebrates the barley harvest. the barley was planted at the end of Passover and now it is ready to reap. a common teaching is to talk about the transformation of seed to plant and concurrently the transformation of wheat into bread (lots of metaphors there since this is also the day that, mythically, the torah was revealed to the Israelites at mt sinai. transformation for this collection of wanderers into a nation and the transformation of information into mature knowledge which the study of torah is supposed to encourage).

 

this is similarly the time when spring puer is being picked, processed, and pressed. there are definitely some nice connections to be made in terms of thinking about the transformation of raw leaf into tea and the transformation of puer overtime as it ages and evolves.

 

shavuote is about celebrating, appreciating, and learning. with puer can come a similar reverence. drinking good tea is a beautiful thing that connects me to the trees, the land, my body, and often to Judaism as i like to dirnk tea and read jewish books. 

 

happy spring and happy season of offerings.

 

xoxo,

atzei besamim