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Many people worry about the future. These worries, as reasonable or unreasonable as they may be, get in the way of our wellbeing and impinge on our joy.
There is a verse in Proverbs that says: “A worry in a person’s heart – cast it away”.
Is this verse advocating to ignore or suppress worrying thoughts?
Words in the Torah don’t have pronunciation vowels, so the word Yaschena “cast it away” can also be read as Yasichena from the word Sicha, which means to talk. This leads the Talmud to interpret the verse as: “A worry in a person’s heart – speak about it with others”.
But possibly the basic translation and the Talmudic interpretation actually complement one another. The Talmud suggests a means through which one may be able to cast away worrying thoughts i.e. by talking it over with another person.
Our speech has the power to trigger our mind to think deeper. Speech not only expresses our thoughts but also enhances and creates more thoughts. When one articulates an issue they are facing, the spoken idea becomes clearer in the mind. With a deeper understanding and broader picture, more perspective is gained and the worry might ease.
The Tzemach Tzedek commented on the phrase: "...with others" that they are "others" only in the bodily sense, but are completely one in spirit with the worrier. This helps the worrier feel more loved and connected, which is very satisfying in itself.