One early source which seems to indicate the celebration of a shalom zachor is a comment of Rabbeinu Tam which can be found in Tosafos Bava Kamma 80a ‘lebei.’ There, Rabbeinu Tam writes that the custom was to make a se’udah soon after the birth of a baby boy as a show of gratitude to HaShem for the baby’s surviving the ordeals of birth. A doctor’s son told me that his father commented that the most dangerous journey one will ever undertake is the journey coming from the womb into the world. Every move and second is fraught with potential mishaps chas ve’shalom, and it is a huge miracle each time a baby comes out alive and healthy.
Often we take things for granted and we don’t realise that the biggest miracles in life are the ones which happen every day. Moreover, if we were continuously aware of the amazing gifts of even the most ‘basic’ things in life – like the fact that we have working senses of sight, touch, speech, hearing, etc. – then we would always be grateful, happy, and appreciative. For example, if we were cognisant of the amazing gift of sight then we’d never let anything get us down in life – any tragedy would pale into significance in the face of the gift of sight. [Picture how much a blind person would give for the ability to see for even just one day]
. The Anshei Kenesses Hagdolah were wary of this, and, apart from the regular morning blessings conveying appreciation for the most ‘basic’ faculties like alertness, sight, clothing, etc, they inserted into our Modim prayer our gratitude to HaShem for ‘the miracles that accompany us every day.’ There truly are regular miracles that constantly happen to us. We have just become too used to them to be constantly wowed by them. Taking a step back now and again, as we do in the shalom zochor, to look, marvel, and appreciate such miracles helps re-sensitise us to these ‘little miracles.’
