"Daily Routine Seems Boring and Meaningless"

Imagine two men—Shlomi, who observes Torah and mitzvot, and Ido, who does not yet. They live their lives with entirely different perspectives, but ultimately, their days are 85% identical. Both head to work in the morning and sometimes get stuck in traffic; both shop for groceries and sometimes debate whether to buy their child an unhealthy candy; both help manage the household and occasionally wonder how it fell into such disarray; both assist with their child's homework and sometimes worry about helping them catch up; and both are occasionally stuck for half a day during a car inspection. The only difference is that Shlomi prays three times a day (two of those prayers—Mincha and Arvit—take only about twenty minutes), and he also dedicates two hours in the evening to Torah study.
The same applies to the female side of the coin—Noa, who observes Torah and mitzvot, and Tali, who does not yet. Their lives are 99% identical. Both wake up to work and rush to drink their morning coffee; both care for their children’s healthy nutrition and check their lunchboxes to see what they ate at school; both take their toddler to the clinic and regret that it's vaccination day; both stand bewildered in front of a pile of laundry. Noa and Tali perform the same actions day in and day out, yet spiritually, their lives are completely opposite.

Externally, the daily actions of Shlomi and Ido, as well as Noa and Tali, seem almost identical, but that is only a superficial view. If we had spiritual glasses, we would see that two identical actions can have completely different spiritual impacts.

For example, take drinking that morning cup of coffee. Every blessing over food or drink sanctifies the physical action and infuses it with spirituality. The blessing creates a point of connection to Hashem, where we thank Him for the kindness He has bestowed upon us.

Another example is changing a baby's diaper. A mother with a Torah perspective knows that changing the diaper doesn't end there; it's an eternal act. She knows that raising her child is an eternal legacy of future generations of Torah-observant descendants, and every mitzvah they do will be credited to her because she gave life. Moreover, every act of kindness to her family is considered a mitzvah of loving-kindness. Kindness within the home is the most important and takes priority. The Mashgiach, Rabbi Shlomo Wolbe z"l, writes based on Rabbi Chaim Vital z"l, that if a person shows kindness outside but neglects their family, the heavenly court will not recognize those external acts of kindness. Our kindness should first and foremost be directed towards our family, and only thereafter to others. Every small act of kindness within the family is an eternal spiritual action credited to us in the future.

Another example is sleep. Even the most effortless act can have spiritual significance when directed towards a spiritual goal. The sages of Israel wrote that a person who sleeps with the intention of maintaining a healthy body and a clear mind for serving Hashem receives spiritual reward for it.

In every daily action, we can infuse spiritual meaning, turning a technical action into an eternal moment. About this, our sages said, "We toil and they toil: we toil and receive reward, and they toil and do not receive reward" (Tractate Brachot, page 28).

When we know that every small action has spiritual significance, our perspective on daily life changes completely. Regular actions take on an eternal dimension, resulting in a sense of fulfillment from a routine day.

How does a physical action become a mitzvah? Rabbi Zamir Cohen with an empowering message: