Some things never change TB Taanit 30

The Mishna teaches“Not only does one fast on the Ninth of Av, but from when the month of Av begins, one decreases acts of rejoicing. During the week in which the Ninth of Av occurs, it is prohibited to cut one’s hair and to launder clothes, but if the Ninth of Av occurs on a Friday, on Thursday these actions are permitted in deference to Shabbat.” (Taanit 26b, Sefaria.org translation) Today we Ashkenazim observe these prohibitions in order to reduce joy described in the Mishnah for a full three weeks before Tisha B'Av starting from the 17th day of Tammuz. Apparently it Babylonia these restrictions were only in place during the week that Tisha B'av fell in.

On Tisha B'Av joy is reduced even more. Today's daf TB Taanit 30 teaches that on Tisha B'Av we mourn the destruction of the First and Second Temples, the loss of Jewish sovereignty, and the long dark exile we experienced just like we would mourn our closes relatives.

“The Sages taught: All mitzvot practiced by a mourner are likewise practiced on the Ninth of Av: It is prohibited to engage in eating, and in drinking, and in smearing oil on one’s body, and in wearing shoes, and in conjugal relations. It is prohibited to read from the Torah, from the Prophets, and from the Writings, or to study from the Mishna, from the Gemara, and from midrash, and from collections of halakhot, and from collections of aggadot.

"However, one may read from a place in the Bible that he is unaccustomed to reading, as it will be difficult for him and he will not derive pleasure from it, and he may likewise study from a place of the Talmud that he is unaccustomed to studying. And one may read from the book of Lamentations; from the book of Job; and from the evil matters in Jeremiah, i.e., his prophecies of doom. And schoolchildren interrupt their studies for the day because it is stated: “The precepts of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart” (Psalms 19:9).

"Rabbi Yehuda says: One may not even read from a place in the Bible that he is unaccustomed to reading, nor may one study from a place of the Talmud that he is unaccustomed to studying. However, one may read from Job, and from Lamentations, and from the evil matters of Jeremiah. And schoolchildren interrupt their studies on that day because it is stated: “The precepts of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart” (Psalms 19:9).” (Sefaria.org translations)

Studying Torah is not only a mitzvah, but it is a Jewish spiritual path connecting us to the Holy One. Studying dafyomi gives me great pleasure and meaning in my life. I can understand if one wants to reduce joy on Tisha B'Av, one would limit what he would study those texts that fit the mood of the day.

But I would have to admit that this was not always the case for me. I joke when I say that I was an outstanding student in Hebrew school. Whenever you walked down the halls, there you saw me out standing. The older the child is the less likely he looks forward to going to Hebrew school. It interferes with almost everything else in life the student enjoys. There is a different variant version of our Gemara. It reads "And schoolchildren do not interrupt their studies on that day 'because it is stated: 'The precepts of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart'." The Vilna Gaon accepts this version because he says that the students do not interrupt their studies because they don't enjoy their lessons. I guess that some things never change. enjoy their lessons. I guess that some things never change.