When we explored the theme of tikkun olam on Sunday, we were invited to consider the little things we do (or could do) on a daily basis to repair the world. The small, simple acts that might notice the holy in each moment, each person we encounter. The easy ways we might embody liberating love.

Some of us have a hard time honoring simple, sacred acts. We’re great at naming big, impressive initiatives. We can notice important and significant opportunities. But no one can seize every important and significant opportunity. We can’t do every big, impressive thing. It isn’t sustainable. That doesn’t stop some people from trying, of course.

What we can do, pretty reliably and sustainably, is invite the holy into every moment. Maybe you don’t like that language. Maybe some other way of saying it works better for you. We can strive to embody our values well in every moment. We can seek to express loving kindness. We can set an intention to be a best possible version of ourselves in that moment. 

Tikkun olam, liberating love, nurturing wholeness, or however else we want to say it… is a way of being. Not an action item, but a way of showing up. It might be an intentional smile at someone in the grocery store. Or getting something off a high shelf that’s a little bit of a struggle for someone to reach. Or tipping well regardless of the quality of service we receive. Or telling our children that we are always going to love them no matter what. 

We can name actions, but the actions flow from a choice we make about how we’re going to be. A choice to embrace our role as healers of the world around us. As vessels for our values, not just affirmers of our values.

There will always be big things we can say yes to. The world will always need people to say yes to important and significant initiatives. But we will be in the best position to say yes sustainably and joyfully if we are cultivating a habit of embodying repair in our daily lives. In little ways that might seem like the least significant thing we could possibly do. 

So, dream small. Dream the simplest of dreams about what wholeness might mean in every finite moment. And be the fulfillment of that dream with a smile or a hug or an apology or a word of kindness or buying someone’s lunch. Whatever wholeness might be in that one, very temporary moment. 

And when that moment has passed and that small dream has been fulfilled, dream a small dream of the next moment. 

And keep dreaming. 

This is how the world is repaired. Moment to moment. Stitching our deepest life-affirming values into the very fabric of everyday life. 

What small dream did you fulfill today? What simple healing will you embody tomorrow? 

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