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We arrive at a few days in this last race until Tisha B & # 39;
Chafetz Chaim shares a beautiful perspective in his Halashon Sefer Shmirat (Sha & ar Hatevuna, Perek 11) on two children seated at their father's table. The father gives a share to everyone. A child removes the share of the other, and despite being provoked, the wronged child chooses to simply ask for another portion rather than fighting with his brother. His father is so happy, he kisses his child and gives him another, bigger part. The child's strategy of not fighting was worth more in the end. It's an idea that many parents can appreciate. We also want our children to hear well. This is a unique kind of annoyance that settles when the opposite happens. We are therefore ready to be flexible when our children coexist peacefully. We will tolerate chaos, chaos and late bedtime when everyone has fun and sounds good. So too, Hashem. The comfort of this very rich pearl is clear: Above all, Hachem wants his children to hear well. We all benefit when we do
At this time of year, this thought becomes more and more relevant. We are desperate for the geula. But what can we do? Our strategy until now has been to focus on the realization of Torah and mitzvot to be worthy of redemption, as well as to continue the beautiful migration of Jews to Israel. However, given some of the most concrete elements of the geula, we can not move independently. We can not build a Beit Hamikdach, and we can not elect a Machia & # 39; h. But we can still progress in our sense of the nation. We can work toward a more coherent body, ready to be led and ready to embrace the next stage of our history.
An obstacle to national unity is our inability to apply a very simple truth to our understanding of Klal Yisrael: that the world is conceived with variety. We all readily accept the idea that each unit of Creation has differentiated parts with specific roles to fulfill, such as a single cell, the human body, ingredients in a recipe, words in one language, elements of the periodic table. This variety works together and is the basis of all aspects of our existence. However, we often refuse incongruously to generalize this known fact to our vision of others. We expect people to be similar to us, and if they differ in any way (fill in the empty field), this gives us permission to be wary. But the truth is that the different ways of forming a relationship with Hashem are not just meant to be tolerated, they are the very ingredients that are necessary for us to go forward. We each have something to offer, we each add a nuance to the Hachem avodate, and we each have to give each other. It is the embrace of the other and the recognition of godliness in the other that can bring us closer to achieving a broader goal. Imagine for a moment that we – the Jewish people – are participating in a team exercise in which all members have to cross an obstacle course. Bypbading or running away from teammates is not an effective strategy. We must embrace and understand how to work together to succeed. It is only in this way that we can build a nation ready to go to the geulah.
Which brings me to what follows. We arrive at Tisha B & # 39; Av, which is followed by a period of 49 days in Rosh Hashana. What if we used a moment every day to consider a relationship that we can develop or improve? We have so many relationships: with brothers and sisters, children, parents, extended family, friends, neighbors, fellow-sailors, spouses, colleagues and even strangers. What if every day we try to make a small improvement in a different relationship in our lives? We could go out of our way to greet an acquaintance, call or text a friend hello, have an extra iota of patience for a family member, do an act of kindness at random for a colleague, or even daven for the somebody's well-being. Hashem knows our thoughts, Hashem recognizes our efforts. Even if it is a relationship with someone we do not know, we could conceptually bring them closer by recognizing our relationship with them as part of Klal Yisrael. They are our brothers, sisters and cousins. This personal progress on relationships will spread to the global community. As citizens of the world, we have work to do to build our nation, an individual relationship at a time.
Some of us may even go a little further. If you have the privilege of speaking fluently over a Jewish community, whether it's because you grew up in a different community, whether you work with a different group, whether you married to a different hashkafa or that you have a wide range of religious observance among members of your family, you are the proud owner of multiple perspectives. If you have been able to make the connection between your varied experiences in a positive way, then you recognize that Judaism is not a zero sum situation. You have taken a multidimensional approach and are able to appreciate that each group has what to offer. If it is you, I hope you share these ideas with others, thus fulfilling one aspect of the Mitzvah of Ahavat Yisrael: speak well of others.
I have two micro-experiences to share. I had the opportunity to work closely with a woman from Satmar a few years ago several months ago. When she asked where I lived, and I told her Teaneck, she said, "I've heard that in Teaneck there are people tochendige [people of tochen, substance]." What excited me, apart from the beautiful compliment, chasidishe woman might appreciate the value in a community very different from hers. The second one was held a few days ago while I was sitting in a water park keeping an eye on my son and his friends while writing this piece. Two teenagers, on different occasions, started a brief conversation with me, wondering if I was Jewish. They said that they were in a Jewish camp of Bai Nai Brith, that they were having fun and that they were Jewish too. They were trying to connect to the whole thing. They were proud to be Jewish.
It's the biggest reality of that. We are a large and varied family. Many of us want to connect. Many of us can see the value one in the other. There are many ways to do it. We can direct our thinking, especially when it comes to our thoughts about others. We can choose selective attention, noting only what is good in others and ignoring the rest. Maybe we will be sorry for Hashem to do the same for us. This is not necessarily easy to perform, but it is a state of mind more than happy to inhabit. Forty-nine days, so many ways – small thoughts or actions, but real moves forward. Let's use Tisha B 'Av as a stepping stone. Let's choose a national state of mind, embrace what everyone has to offer and, in the weeks to come, bring Hachem the nachat of his children to hear
By Grunny Zlotnick
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