Did I Mention I Started Daf Yomi?

January 5th began a new Daf Yomi cycle. Daf Yomi is the practice of studying a double-sided page of Talmud every day. It’s a fascinating and difficult discipline, taking 7.5 years to complete. Talmud is usually studied in great depth, with commentary and discussion. It references itself and other texts, and this quick study does not allow for time to really dissect a text that you can learn for days and still be on the first paragraph.

For many years I thought I’d never be able to do such a thing. But with the advent of new technology, now I can carry my daf with me in PDF form. My ipad always knows where I am.

And so I came to this piece, “One whose deceased relative is laid before him is exempt from reciting Shema” (B. Talmud Berakhot 17b). This is as far as I got. And then I stopped to live this text with my mother’s death. For three days, I didn’t pray, focused instead on the mitzvah of caring for my mother in death. How strange it was to recite Mincha after the funeral, stopping in the Amidah, my breath catching as I remembered to no longer recite my mother’s mane for healing.

Now, ten days later, I’ll start again ten pages behind. We don’t study text in aninut or shiva. Two daf a day, and I hope to catch up. Meanwhile, so much to do, so little time, but with a renewed focus and dedication.