Chanukah Was Never Meant To Be Packed Away

We often hear people say, “Now that Chanukah is behind us, we can go back to normal.” But is that really true?

It depends which part of Chanukah we are referring to. If we mean the excessive consumption of doughnuts and other unhealthy foods, then yes—it is time to return to normal, healthy eating. (Though it would have been far better had healthier recipes been offered to begin with—using wholesome flours, healthier oils such as olive oil (light, for cooking), coconut oil, or palm oil, rather than canola, cottonseed, or soybean oils, which are extremely unhealthy, and organic stevia as a sweetener.)

However, when it comes to lehodot u’lehallel, Chanukah is not something we leave behind. On the contrary, it is something we must carry with us. Our “normal” should be a life filled with praise to Hashem—lived with joy, gratitude, and love. Chanukah is meant to be taken “to go,” not put away.

In truth, our daily lives are already filled with opportunities for lehodot u’lehallel,—through davening three times a day and through the many brachot we recite throughout our daily routines. What is often missing is not the opportunity, but the focus. When we put our hearts and minds into praising Hashem, it transforms the experience. Gratitude—to Hashem and to the people in our lives—also carries profound psychological benefits. Its opposite, unappreciativeness, is a root cause of much sadness and emotional struggle.

So how do we make this practical?

Step #1: Make a kabbalah—a conscious commitment—to incorporate lehodot u’lehallel, into daily life. Say it verbally, with focus and with feeling.

Step #2: Stop rushing through davening and brachot. Say them more slowly and clearly, allowing yourself to be mindful of the words. From experience, saying them slowly actually makes them more pleasant and easier. When you rush, it never feels fast enough—but when you slow down, you enjoy it.

Step #3: As mindfulness increases, the heart naturally becomes more engaged in the davening—what the seforim refer to as kavanat halev. One powerful way to strengthen this is by learning seforim that explain and give insight into the tefillot.

Practical advice: Before making a bracha, either say or think the words “lehodot u’lehallel laShem.” This keeps us focused on the mission we have undertaken. It deepens our connection to Hashem and helps keep the flame of Chanukah burning all year long—not only within ourselves, but outwardly as well. Others will learn from us, and we will become like a menorah—spreading the light of mitzovt and simchat throughout the year, even in the darkness of galut.

Let us keep the light of Chanukah burning—the light of Moshiach, as taught in the sef orim. May that light grow stronger and stronger, and may we soon merit to see the coming of Moshiach, knowing that we each did our part to bring him closer.