“RABBI’S MUSINGS (& AMUSINGS)”
Erev Shabbos Kodesh parshas Ki Setzei
20 Elul 5781/August 19, 2021
Avos perek 1-2
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לרפואה שלימה נטע יצחק בן רחל
THE LONG JOURNEY
As
another wonderful camp season came to an end, and all the campers boarded buses
to return home, the camp families also packed up their bungalows and headed
home.
Our
family’s trip to Monsey takes around an hour and a half. But many families
travel much further distances in order to spend their summers at Camp Dora
Golding in East Stroudsburg, PA. There are families that drive from Pittsburgh
(300 miles, five hours), Cleveland (400 miles, almost 6 hours), Miami (1300
miles, 19 hours), Dallas (1500 miles, 21 hours), and Las Vegas (2500 miles,
over 33 hours).
To be
honest, I have a hard time doing the drive from Monsey to Lakewood when we
visit my in-laws, which is under two hours. I can hardly imagine those multi-hour
drives in a car packed to the roof with luggage and restless children.
I often
joke with friends who live in out of town communities that cities 3/4 hours
away are practically next door. But they don’t really see the humor. They claim
that that is truly how they feel. A ten hour trip is a bit long, but 3-4 hours
isn’t bad.
More
than one friend who grew up in the tristate area and now lives “out of town”
noted to me that there is a shift of mindset that takes place when one moves
out of town. Trips that were almost unbearably long when they lived on the east
coast, become not only tolerable, but even pleasant. They related that it takes
some time to get used to living out of town, but then one starts to accept that
common destinations are more distant, and it becomes part of life.
For
those of us who still live in the tense New York world and its environs, this
is a foreign concept. But being that I’ve heard this same idea expressed by so
many out-of-towners, it must have validity.
During
the month of Elul, we set out on a spiritual quest towards self-improvement and
growth. One of the biggest impediments is our desire for quick-fixes and
instant accomplishments. The long road intimidates us, and we lack patience for
it. But true accomplishment requires patience, resilience, and perseverance.
The preliminary
requirement for spiritual growth is a shift of mindset. If one expects and
demands to get to his destination in a minimal amount of time and has no
patience for traffic or the long road, he will be severely limited in how far
he can travel. Only when he recognizes and accepts that the long road is par
for the course, can he really effect true change and growth.
My
rebbe, Rabbi Berel Wein, related that on one occasion he was invited to speak
in Pittsburgh. When Rabbi Wein arrived in the terminal, a woman was waiting to
drive him to his hotel.
The
woman said that she had a white Honda Civic which was parked in row three,
stall four. They walked together through the massive airport to the parking
lot. But when they arrived at row three stall four, her car wasn’t there.
They
then walked through the entire parking lot looking, but there was no white
Honda Civic. The woman was very distraught and told Rabbi Wein that she
would call a taxi to drive him to the hotel while she tried to figure out what
to do about her car.
While
they were walking back to the terminal, a car pulled up alongside them. A
man rolled down the window and said he couldn’t find a parking spot, so he
would gladly drive them to their car so he could take their spot. When Rabbi
Wein explained the problem, the man asked to see the parking ticket the woman
received when she parked her car. She handed him the ticket and he took one
look at it and said that he knew what the problem was. Her car was parked in
the long-term parking lot, and she was looking for her car in the short-term
parking lot. He drove them over to the long-term parking lot and, sure
enough, in row three stall four was the white Honda Civic.
When
they were finally on their way, the woman asked Rabbi Wein what he thought about
what had occurred. He replied that it’s a great moral lesson. Most people look
for their happiness, fulfilment, and future in the short-term parking lot, but
it’s parked in the long-term parking lot. The disaster of modern man is
that everybody is parked in the short-term lot and fails to realize the
long-term consequence of behavior, actions, and attitudes.
Elul is
not about insincere or unsustainable resolutions. It’s about long-term growth.
Our task and goal in Elul is to set out on the journey with an eye on the
destination and a plan of how we want to get there.
Safe and
uplifting travels!
Shabbat Shalom & Good Shabbos,
R’ Dani and Chani Staum