Dried Apricot Rose

A Tu B'shvat Thought and How-to.

The Divrei Shlomo, ר' שלמה מטשורטקוב,

teaches us that from the custom of eating fruits on ט"ו בשבט we can learn and strengthen ourselves in our trust in Hashem.

Shvat is in the middle of the winter when the trees are dry and empty, without any signs of life.

When we eat their fruits, we awaken in ourselves hope and trust that these trees will continue to blossom and bear fruit.

So too man is compared to trees as the פסוק says,

"כי האדם עץ השדה"

Even if we feel distant from Torah and eternity, if we make the first step to return, we have the opportunity to elevate ourselves.

This thought gives me a lot of encouragement as we continue to deal with lockdown, quarantine, challenges on the home front and in our businesses.

If we can attempt to find the blossom and envision the fruit, it can give us the impetus to take a step forward.

Dried Apricot Rose

Here's an easy flower you can make out of dried apricots and dried cherries.

For each flower, you will need 2 apricots and 1 cherry.

• Split the apricot in half leaving it a bit connected at the end.

• Inside the split place another apricot split almost to the end.

• Add a dried cherry or strawberry into the middle.

• You can mount it on a toothpick or skewer.

Create a bunch of them and you have a bouquet.