I’m really enjoying the journey of building up my own religious and spiritual beliefs from first principles.

example:

brachot seemed meaningless to me. just things you had to say that got in the way before you could e.g. eat

but then, staring out at the ocean, in awe of its beauty, with immense gratitude and appreciation, and something in a book reminded me that there’s a bracha on seeing immense natural beauty

and it suddenly clicked. a bracha is simply a ritual for expressing our gratitude and appreciation. recognising and reconnecting with the deeper beauty of the world

that’s why we say one before food. and when we wake up. to appreciate.

that’s something i can totally get onboard with

i just had to discover it for myself for it to have meaning.