The fast day of Tisha B’av begins tonight. Like Yom Kippur, this fast lasts a full 26 hours. Argh.

I know I’m not alone in my struggles with fasting…though that doesn’t make me any cheerier at 4pm when my husband is starting to look like a roast turkey with all the trimmings.

I’m used to a Judaism of feasting, not fasting. So how to shift gears and find meaning in a day of denial?

Here to help us get the most out of Tisha B’av, Jay Michaelson offers some surprising and inspiring thoughts on the function of fasting.