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When well-being comes from engaging our strengths and virtues, our lives are imbued with authenticity. – Martin Seligman
Do you find life draining and wearisome? Or is it invigorating and uplifting? The difference between “survive” versus “thrive” may well hinge on how well you are drawing on your signature strengths. We all have certain positive traits, qualities, and abilities. There is a subset of these attributes, however, known as our “signature strengths” which are our own unique combination of abilities that when utilized, empower us to make our lives happier, more meaningful and fulfilled. These strengths are not the “shoulds” and “coulds” of our life, but those positive aspects of ourselves that are so entrenched in our bones so that we can’t really be any other way, even if we tried.
A corollary to this idea can be found in the some of the agricultural laws of ancient Israel. The Land of Israel is not mere terra firma, but it is a uniquely sacred and holy land. Therefore agricultural laws have a spiritual dimension and the ideas are relevant for us personally, whenever and wherever we may live. For example, the Land of Israel produces numerous fruits and vegetables, and yet the laws of “Bikkurim”, which are the laws of bringing the first fruits to the holy Priests, dictated that only the seven species for which the Land of Israel is specifically praised in the Torah – wheat, barley, grapevines, figs, pomegranates, olives and dates – are brought to the Temple.
Not only are these seven species special for being singled out, but they are uniquely holy, as reflected by the special blessings recited after eating these specific foods, where we thank God for the goodness of the land. In some mystical way, you could look at these seven species as Israel’s “signature strengths” – agriculturally speaking.
Cultivating Discernment
When the Jewish farmer went into his fields and noticed the first of the buds to break, the first flowers to blossom, and then the emerging fruit, he tied a cord around the fruit and proclaimed it as being designated as a first fruit to be brought to the Temple. Otherwise, how could he know which fruits were which when he was harvesting them? Similarly, we have a lot of traits and attributes, yet we need to need to indentify our signature strengths, to tend them and cultivate them, so that they can help us actualize ourselves at our best.
Cultivating Mastery
The Torah specifically instructs the farmer to use a basket to transport the fruit to the Temple, emphasizing the word “basket” by using it twice. Baskets are lightweight, have holes for ventilation, and allow the fruit to lie in them without getting bruised, etc., because it’s important that these holy fruits arrive at the Temple undamaged.
Similarly, we have to “carry” our strengths appropriately. All strengths have a flip side that is a weakness. For example, one of my top strengths is creativity, but an abundance of creativity gets in the way of implementing and actualizing my ideas. Leadership is a strength – but it can also dis-empower others from stepping into their own potential. Kindness is a strength, but it can also enable dysfunction and blind us to problems, etc. Utilizing strengths to accomplish goals and develop resilience to life’s inevitable setbacks is very powerful, but we must be conscious and bounded, so as not to use our strengths in ways that hurt or constrain us – or others.
Cultivating Service
Finally, the Torah commands the farmer to hand the basket to the priest who in turn is commanded to take it from hand of the farmer. For us, the idea is that when we are using our strengths in the service of others, in connection with something bigger than ourselves, and as part of our connection to God, then it becomes an act of transcendence. It’s the act of “paying it forward”, that gives our lives deeper meaning, fulfillment and purpose.
And that’s the essence of Bikkurim, to understand that everything we have is from God, and therefore we give back the best that we have as best we can. Your signature strengths are a gift from God to you. How you use your signature strengths, however, is your gift back to God. As Coach George Halas said, “Nobody who ever gave his best regretted it.” So what are your first fruits? Are you carrying them well in your life? And who are you feeding?
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