Practical T'Shuvah

There are may things that can distract out minds from what we normally think of as t'shuvah. T'shuvah is classically known as a return to mitzvot, apologizing for wrongdoing, weeding out sinful behavior, and the like. I personally find these things difficult to focus on when I'm planning events, over-tired, stressed at work, suffering financial burdens, etc. What I am finding more and more is that all of these circumstances need to be brought into t'shuvah also:

For example:

I could sleep one hour less to daven a full shacharit in the morning. This could be a very important thing. OR, if i'm already over-tired, this could actually spiral me into a pattern of impatience with those who I love most, higher blood pressure, neglect of excercise, etc.

The point is that sometimes t'shuvah means getting the extra sleep. There are times that t'shuvah is best expressed as excercise! The thrice daily prayer for t'shuvah shleima-complete return means that all of who we are is brought into t'shuvah. Particularly in the month of Elul, we are bombarded with numerous concepts of what t'shuvah is all about (I've done a great deal of that on this blog). At the end of the day, the practical outworking of some of the fundamentals of true t'shuvah is expressed in taking every single circumstance that comes our way and using it as an opportunity to do t'shuvah: apologizing for a harsh word, admitting the need for help, eating the right way, getting enough sleep, learning a little more Torah, davening more consistantly, davening more intentionally, mending relationships at work, and beyond...