In the midst of so much upheaval and uncertainty, Tu B’Shvat arrives as a whisper of renewal, reminding us that even in the harshest conditions, life persists. We stand at the crossroads of destruction and regeneration—Los Angeles is reeling from the blazes, national politics are disrupting American life, and the world aches with division. Yet, Tu B’Shvat calls us back to an ancient wisdom: we, like trees, are resilient, and our roots run deep.
The Talmud teaches that Tu B’Shvat is one of the four Jewish new years (BT Rosh Hashanah 2a), a marker of cycles beyond human control. It is the new year for trees, a time when the sap begins to rise again, coursing through trunks that have stood dormant through the cold months. We, too, experience seasons of stillness and growth, despair and hope. “She [Torah] is a tree of life for those who hold fast to her” (Proverbs 3:18). The wisdom of our tradition, like the steady strength of trees, provides us with something to hold onto in times of uncertainty.
Rabbi Yekutiel Yehuda Halberstam, a Polish Chasidic rabbi who lived through the horrors of Auschwitz, teaches that just as sap rises in the trees in the month of Shevat, so too does the human heart begin to stir with faith and emotion, even after a long hard winter, eventually blossoming again into beauty. Tu B’Shvat is not merely a celebration of trees; it is an invitation to examine how we root ourselves in a world that is constantly shifting. Trees stand firm, even amidst storms. They bend but do not break. They lose their leaves, but not their essence. They teach us endurance, patience, and the quiet power of drawing from deep within when the world around us feels barren.
Rabbi Yisrael Friedman of Chortkov, the early 20th century Chasidc rabbi from Ukraine, offers us a profound metaphor: when all hope seems lost, when we feel like a lifeless stump, we should remember the tree in winter. It appears dead, yet beneath the surface, life is quietly returning. The same is true for us. When the political landscape feels bleak, when personal struggles feel overwhelming, when the planet itself seems in peril, Tu B’Shvat reminds us that renewal is possible. The first stirrings of spring always come, even when we cannot yet see them.
Just as trees grow from seeds, so too do we experience rebirth by embracing the humility of becoming as nothing. Rabbi Yisrael teaches that like a seed that disintegrates in the soil to germinate life anew, we also must at times in our lives break down to break open to allow something new to emerge—something we never imagined possible. From that place of surrender, we grow into something greater, our potential unfolding like branches reaching for the sky.
As we honor this new year for trees, Tu B’Shvat invites us to bear witness to the hidden renewal of the world and participate in our own renewal. To embody the passage in the Torah, “a person is like a tree of the field” (Deuteronomy 20:19), here is a simple ritual you can do to connect with the spirit of Tu B’Shvat:
- Find a tree—perhaps one near your home or in a place that holds meaning for you. Stand beside it, place your hands on its bark, and take a deep breath.
- Reflect on your own roots. What grounds you? What gives you strength and nourishment? What roots you when fierce winds of change blow?
- Acknowledge your growth—like a tree adding rings each year, recognize how you have grown, sometimes through difficulty. Take time to write your reflections in a journal.
- Offer gratitude to the tree, to the earth, to the unseen forces that sustain life.
- Eat tree fruit with a blessing—With the simple yet profound act of blessing and eating of the fruit of the tree, invoke the promise of renewal and set your intention for what fruit you want to grow into the world in this cycle.
In a time when the winds of change are raging, literally and metaphorically, let us be like the trees. Let us root deep, stand firm, draw from deep waters, reach toward the heavens, and bring our fruit into the world again. The world needs our resilience and our faith. No matter how harsh the winter, spring always returns.
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Rabbi Zelig is now offering lifecycle ceremonies and rituals, spiritual mentoring, and educational consulting with his new project: Regenerative Rabbinics. Check out his website to learn more: www.rabbizelig.com
