Tisha B’Av: Shall We Dance?

“A time to weep,” at the time of mourning; “And a time to laugh,” after the mourning. “A time to wail,” at the time of mourning; “And a time to dance,” after the mourning (Ecclesiastes Rabbah 3:3, 1).

Perhaps the Midrash is teaching us that one half of the verse must come with the other: “a time to weep,” must be followed by, “a time to laugh.” “A time to wail,” must be followed by, “a time to dance.” We cannot weep unless we know that there is a laugh to follow. We cannot wail unless we are committed to the dance that follows.

We do not mourn during the Three Weeks only to mourn, but with a commitment to find, “a time to laugh.” We do not cry out during the Three Weeks only to be criers, but, we cry now looking forward to, “a time to dance.” The rebuilding is in the laughter and dancing that follows the weeping and wailing. We do not weep and wail without committing ourselves to rebuilding.

We approach the sadness of the Three Weeks with the intense commitment to rediscover the sources of laughter and dance in our lives.