Practice Gratitude With Malya; 17th Edition

Happy Rosh Chodesh Nisan!

This rosh chodesh nisan, I sat down to write this newsletter and I kept getting phone calls and had to stop writing. 

When I returned to my computer, I decided to delete everything I wrote and rewrite it from the beginning. 

I am now sitting outside with the sun shining on my face hoping that what I want to express will come out properly this time!

Rosh chodesh has a special connection to females and this month of Nisan also has a special feminine connection. 

I always wondered why was it that the semi-holiday of rosh chodesh was given to women? Today, I found out that answer. The answer not only made me more proud to be a woman, but the answer tied my entire Gratitude Newsletter idea for this month together! 

What I found out is that when the men went to create the golden calf, they rushed to ask the women for their jewelry and for their help. The women not only refused their participation in creating the golden calf, but they also refused to give up their jewelry. That is why women have a special connection to rosh chodesh.

Let us take it further though. The women were not given rosh chodesh as a gift because of jewelry, but they were given it because they showed unshakeable faith in Hashem. The men quickly lost faith, but the women held strong. 

All of Judaism is based on strong faith and it is the women who remain strong in their faith despite what is going on around them to try and shake their faith. 

It is the women who pass this faith on to their children and this is the reason why we, the women, were given rosh chodesh. Rosh chodesh is the time when the month is renewed. It is renewed after it looks like it completely disappeared. So too, even in the hardest of times, it is the women who bring our nation back and hold that strong faith even when it looks like there is none left. 

This lesson was very personal for me because my grandmother always says that her mother, Farcha bat Chaviva/Yitzchak Yosef, may her soul rest in peace, would constantly stand by the window and talk to Hashem. My great grandmother passed that faith onto my grandmother who has now passed it down to my generation! 

When I am unsure of certain things, my grandmother tells me to have faith in Hashem. Faith is what keeps our nation going, faith is what keeps us alive and faith is what will bring the ultimate redemption. 

Do you remember who had faith when the Jews were leaving Egypt? It was the women. 

They were the ones who came prepared with instruments to sing shira to Hashem. They did not wait to be saved, they prepared it in advance because their faith was so strong that they did not have to wait to be saved!  

Look at Miriam and Yocheved. Yocheved, who is the mother of Moshe Rabeinu (Moses) put her son into a basket and into the river. As hard as it was, she had faith that everything would work out. 

And everything did. 

Miriam, who went to sit by the water, saw her little brother Moshe be taken out from the water and because she waited, she was able to arrange that her mother would be his wet nurse. Now, Moshe was able to be with his real mother every day! 

We can now take it a step further. When the Jews were in the Midbar, Miriam got “tzoraas” and Moshe said that the entire nation would wait 7 days for Miriam. He did this out of gratitude for when she waited for him as a baby. 

Hashem out of gratitude to the ladies who kept their faith in G-D were given Rosh Chodesh as their special day.

This newsletter is not only here to inspire you to have faith, but it is here to inspire you to be grateful. Just like the women had faith in Hashem and Hashem rewarded them with Rosh Chodesh so too let us learn from it and like Moshe Rabeinu and being thankful. 

Take a moment now and write down 5 women in your life who you are grateful for. 

I will start: 

1. Thank you Hashem for my mother who is truly the most amazing mom anyone can ask for. After her long day at work, she comes home and is there for all of us despite how tired she might be. 
2. Thank you Hashem for my grandmother. Nana I am so blessed that we have the opportunity to hang out everyday. Thank you for sharing stories with me about your mom and her faith. Thank you for always helping me with my monthly newsletter.  
3. Thank you Hashem for my sisters, I don’t know what it would be like to have only brothers, so I am so grateful that you both were born! 
4. Thank you Hashem for blessing me with grandma. Grandma Roz, you are always in my heart and even though you have been gone for so long, just know that I am so grateful for the love you showed me for the short 8 years I got to spend with you. 
5. Thank you Hashem for the ladies here on linkedin that have supported my journey since I have begun. Thank you to those who have redt me shidduchim and called shadchanim for me. Thank you to all of you women who have referred me to your friends for business and thank you for your friendship. 

Talking about faith is not always easy, sometimes it is hard to have true and unwavering faith, but knowing that I am a Jewish woman learning this concept, has now strengthened my faith. I love writing this newsletter because I always get more inspired and motivated after it is complete. I learn new spiritual things in the process and it just makes me feel so much better. I hope it does the same for you. 

Thank you to everyone on here who supports me and makes me feel loved, valued and appreciated. 

I cannot wait to see what life has in store for me for the coming months and I can’t wait to do it alongside all of you! 

Thank you Hashem for the sunlight. After going outside these words just flowed so smoothly and I know it was because of the beautiful sun that you have created! 

Happy Rosh Chodesh Nisan! 

-Malya Adina Feivelson

#themalyacam