The first of the three Shofar calls (four if you count the big, long, final one as separate) is the TEKIAH. It is the call that is a simple, clear, straightforward note. Jewish law (Halakha) demands that every shofar note needs to have a TEKIAH precede and succeed it. It serves as a kind of audio bookend to the other notes. Before we get to the complexity of the other Shofar sounds, we start and end with a hearing, an experiencing, a reminding of the things that ground us and root us.

Maybe the initial steps we can take before responding to the TEKIAH calls ahead of us involve making sure we know or remember what our foundations look and feel like. Being human and making our way in the world can make it challenging to always remember these foundational elements. And then there are cases—maybe you would categorize yourself this way—where what we thought were our foundational bookends were not what we thought they were. Instead of needing to remember, we need to find them.

So, get ready… TEKIAH! Listen to that smooth, stable, and unbroken sound, and invite its resonance to help you remember and discover who and what grounds, roots, and centers you.