Says I Got No Satisfaction, That's Why I Sing The Blues ( Bob Weir - "One More Saturday Night")

When I visited my kids at camp last week, I couldn’t help but note the irony, especially from my 13 year old daughter. At home, she would routinely complain that her bedroom isn’t big enough, her closet wasn’t big enough, the bathroom is too small to share with her younger sister and brother and she doesn’t have enough clothes. Sounds like a typical 13 year old girl, or at least a typical 13 year old girl that doesn’t really want for anything. At camp, she shares a room with 12 other girls, she sleeps on the bottom of a bunk bed, has four shelves, about 9 inches of closet space, shares a bathroom with 12 girls and two counselors, and couldn’t be happier. She has less room, less privacy, less clothes and in general seems quite satisfied. Now that is ironic!         

This week’s Parsha is Eikev. Here in his second discourse, Moshe explains to the new generation how the second set of tablets came into being. He explains how God forgave their parents of their idolatrous behavior in regards to the Eigel Zahav (Golden Calf), and all B’nai Yisroel must do essentially refrain from Idolatry, serve God, worship God, and the nation will be rewarded with water, grass and quality lives. Moshe also reminds B’nai Yisroel that they have nothing to fear when they enter into Canaan and conquer the land even though they maybe outnumbered, because God has already demonstrated that he will protect his people. He did so during the Yetziat Mitzrayim (Exodus), and as long as B’nai Yisroel keeps its side of the B’rit, God will continue to protect his people.

            However it is towards the end of the Parsha, that we encounter a possible answer from a passage of Torah that is familiar to many. V’Haya Im Tishma’u El Mitzvotai Asher Anochi M’tzaveh Etchem Hayom L’Ahavah – It will be that if you hearken to My commandments that I command you today to love Hashem your God and to serve him with all you heart and with all your soul…(Deut. 11:13). This is the second paragraph of the Shema, a part of the daily prayers we say every Shacharit (morning service) and Ma’Ariv (evening service). In this second paragraph of the Shema, we are told that there is a reward for our obeying God’s commandments and there will be retribution for disobeying God’s commandments. Among the rewards is a phrase that, at first glance, does not seem like such a reward. V’Haya Im Tishma’u El Mitzvotai Asher Anochi M’tzaveh Etchem Hayom L’Ahavah Et Adonai Eloheichem Ul’Avdo B’Chol Levavchem Uv’chol  Nafshachem. V’Natati M’tar Artzechem B’Ito Yoreh Umalkosh V’Asaftah D’Ganecha V'Tiroshcha v’Yitzharecha – It will be that if you hearken to My commandments that I command you today to love Hashem your God and to serve him with all your heart and with all your soul, then I shall provide rain for your Land in its proper time, the early and the late rains, that you may gather in your grain, your wine and your oil.  V’Natati Esev B’Sadcha Livhemtecha V’Achalta V’Savata – I shall provide grass in your field for your cattle and you will eat and be satisfied (Deut 11:15). Among the rewards is grass for our cattle and we will eat and be satisfied. The simple meaning of the verse suggests that we will eat the grass and or the cattle, but whatever we eat, we will be satisfied –v’Savatah. Satisfied implies that we will not be wanting for anything. Satisfied means fulfilled, content. How can the grass that God will make plentiful satisfy us. Rashi explains the verse as follows: When you are very prosperous, you must be very careful not to rebel against God, because man rejects God only when he is sated.” 

          

           When I asked her to compare the living conditions at home with the living conditions at camp, she looked at me as if I was a fool. She explained that she was with her friends, that she was doing so many amazing things and as a result didn’t need so many creature comforts.  I didn’t tell her, but it was quite evident to me, that spiritually she was flourishing and as a result she didn’t spend time “wanting”. She was satisfied with what she had.

            Peace,

            Rav Yitz

I Get No Satisfaction, That's Why I Sing The Blues (Bob Weir - "One More Saturday Night")

Our eldest daughter has now started her new life. Now a college graduate, she has beaten the odds and actually found a job in her major: Political Science. She has moved out west to work on the Presidential campaign. While we are all excited for her; the conversations leading up to her first day of work had very little to do with working on a presidential campaign.  In fact she seem to call me only when she needed something from me: Money, a credit card, her anxiety about starting a new phase of life, a car. So I gave her some money, I have put off the issue of a credit card for a while,  I laughed at her anxiety reminded her that she is lucky to be employed and then reminded her that this is what she wanted to be doing, “What could possibly be the problem?” Then I explained how to buy a car. Thinking for a moment that I had been a wise and good father, I receive another phone call from my daughter. It turns out that I am no co-signing for her car loan.  A couple of days later she called. Before she could speak, I told her that she cannot call me anymore if she is only going to ask me for things. It seemed that with every phone call, she indicated another degree of frustration, aggravation or dissatisfaction with her life circumstances.  I am thinking what I wouldn’t give to be 22, right out of college working and having minimal expenses and only being responsible for myself! How dissatisfying could one possibly be?

This week’s Parsha is Eikev. Here in his second discourse, Moshe reminds B'nai Yisroel of the reward for fulfilling the commandment, their parents’ experience of the Exodus from Egypt, the miracle, the Eigel Zahav (the Golden Calf) as well as the trials and tribulations of the life in the wilderness. Moshe also reminds B’nai Yisroel that they have nothing to fear when they enter into Canaan and conquer the land even though they maybe outnumbered, because God has already demonstrated that he will protect his people. He did so during the Yetziat Mitzrayim (Exodus), and as long as B’nai Yisroel keeps its side of the B’rit, God will continue to protect his people and they will remain in the Eretz Canaan

Particularly noteworthy in the parsha is what is known as the second Paragraph of the Shema. This Paragraph contain 7 verses and essentially outlines the reward for Bnai Yisroel’s observance of God’s commandments. Just exactly what is the reward for Bnai Yisroel’s undying loyalty to Hashem and the observance of the commandment? While I am sure many expected something really large and quite awesome; the reward seems rather small and simple. Yet the reward is also quite profound. V’Haya Im Tishma’u El Mitzvotai Asher Anochi M’tzaveh Etchem Hayom L’Ahavah Et Adonai Eloheichem Ul’Avdo B’Chol Levavchem Uv’chol Nafshachem. V’Natati M’tar Artzechem B’Ito Yoreh Umalkosh V’Asaftah D’Ganecha V'Tiroshcha v’Yitzharecha – It will be that if you hearken to My commandments that I command you today to love Hashem your God and to serve him with all your heart and with all your soul, then I shall provide rain for your Land in its proper time, the early and the late rains, that you may gather in your grain, your wine and your oil.  V’Natati Esev B’Sadcha Livhemtecha V’Achalta V’Savata – I shall provide grass in your field for your cattle and you will eat and be satisfied (Deut 11:15). Among the rewards is grass in our fields for our cattle and we will eat and be satisfied. It certainly doesn’t very glamorous. Yet it does speak to the human condition.  Rashi explains the reward as follows: When you are very prosperous, you must be very careful not to rebel against God, because man rejects God only when he is sated.”

I spoke to my daughter earlier this week. I said it would be nice to hear from her and not have her need something from me nor express some degree of dissatisfaction with something. She actually understood and proceeded to tell me that now that she has a car, now that she has started working, now that she has collected her first paycheck, she feel like a person. For now she actually used the word “satisfied”.  I wish I could say that I was satisfied. Now I just have another thing to keep me awake at night. Now I need to worry about my daughter having a car at her disposal driving all around the state of Colorado. Even worse, because of the two hour time difference, I won’t know if she arrived home safely by the time I go to sleep at night. I guess I won’t be very satisfied with the quality of my sleep until the campaign is finished.

Peace,

Rav Yitz.

To Lay Me Down One Last Time - (Robert Hunter & Jerry Garcia - "To Lay Me Down")

          Most parents and parenting experts agree that children's bedtime rituals are very important. For some, it may be reading before the lights go out. For some, it means reviewing the next day’s schedule with the child. Some children will pray before they go to bed. The bedtime ritual in Judaism is to recite the Shemah before one goes to sleep at night. When our children were younger; we would read to them and then we would say the Shemah and the first paragraph beginning with the words “V’Ahavtah et Adoshem Elokechah…”By the time our children were saying their first words, they would say this with us. I remember the feeling my wife and I had when we would begin the ritual and they would say the entire paragraph by themselves. Then I would whistle the song that I gave them when they were born, “Summertime,” “Somewhere or the Rainbow” and “What a Wonderful World”. Then we kiss them goodnight, and we hope that they will sleep through the night and not wake us up.

This morning we read from Parsha V’Etchanan. B’nai Yisroel sits intently and listens to Moshe continues his first discourse on the Law. Moshe re-iterates the covenant, the punishment of exile and the constant possibility of return. Moshe re-iterates the experience of revelation at Sinai as well as a re-statement of the Aseret Dibrot, the Ten Commandments. Moshe teaches this new generation that they heard the revelation, they witnessed the fire. And the fact that they sit on the Eastern Bank of the Jordan River is a testament to that fact. Moshe reminds this new generation that this Torah is perfect, one can interpret but we cannot add or subtract words. Instead we must struggle and make sense of every aspect of Torah. Moshe then introduces the lone piece of dogma in the entire Torah: Shemah Yisroel Adoshem Elokeinu Adoshem Echad Hear O Israel the Lord is God the Lord is One. The Parsha concludes with Moshe strongly reminding B’nai Yisroel that as part of the Covenant it must reclaim the land. Once in the land, B’nai Yisroel is obligated to separate themselves from the other indigenous tribes and uphold the obligations of the covenant that God made with their ancestors.

The Talmud in Tractate Brachot 61b offers the following Aggadah about the final  moments of Rabbi Akiva’s life in order to explain the Pasuk V’Ahavtah et Adoshem Elokechah, B’chol Levavchah U’vechol Nafshechah U’ve’Chol M’odechah – You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and all your soul and with all your resources (Deut. 6:5). In doing so, ChaZaL –Our Sages of blessed memory, intimated as to why we say the Shemah before we go to sleep. ”When Rabbi Akiva was brought for his execution, it was time to recite the Shemah. As the executioners were combing his flesh with iron combs, he lovingly accepted the yoke of God’s kingship. As he prepared himself to recite the Shemah, his disciples asked: Our teacher, even to such a degree as this you prepare yourself to say the Shemah? Akiva replied: All my days I have been troubled by this verse “With All your soul” (Deut. 6:5), which I interpreted as meaning “Even if he takes your soul.” But I thought to myself: When shall I have an occasion to fulfill this precept? Now that I have the occasion, shall I not fulfill it? So he recited the Shemah and he prolonged the concluding word of the Shemah [the word “Echad”] until he died as he finished saying the word. A divine voice went forth and proclaimed: Happy are you Akiva that your soul has departed with the word “Echad!” With all the possible words and concepts that the Torah teaches, why did Rabbi Akiva view these few Psukim (verses) as the essence of Jewish belief? What are in these particular words that offered Akiva a sense of peace as he made these words his final words? I don’t pretend to go into the psyche of a dying man who is being tortured for teaching torah and being a leader of the Jewish people.

When we read these two Psukim Shemah Yisroel Adoshem Elokeinu Adoshem Echad Hear O Israel the Lord is God the Lord is One: V’Ahavtah et Adoshem Elokechah, B’chol Levavchah U’vechol Nafshechah U’ve’Chol M’odechah – You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and all your soul and with all your resources, we should be in awe of the raw simplicity of the first statement, and we should feel empowered by words of the second statement. Even as Akiva helplessly lay splayed out on an altar with metal combs ripping his flesh, Akiva possessed enough strength to declare Hear O Israel. Akiva had enough faith to declare The Lord is God. No matter what, no matter the joy or the sadness, God is the ultimate source of energy, the ultimate source of all things. Rabbi Akiva understood that “with all your soul” means in life and in death. R’Akiva understood that in life and even as he lay dying, he was still able to engage in a relationship with God. No matter where we are in life, no matter what is happening in our life, we are all empowered to engage God. We are all capable of having Torah and doing Torah.

Every night our children go to sleep. Every night we go to sleep. Often time, bedtime for children can be fraught with anxiety. Monsters are under the bed, mommy and daddy are not there in the room. For the elderly, night time is also fraught with anxiety, which is why it is quite common for older people to wake up so early in the morning. I remember asking my grandfather why he would wake up so early and he would say that he has plenty of time to sleep when he is dead (God forbid). Yet his response was quite profound. Sleep, in a sense is the closest thing to death, which we all experience. Our heart rate slows, our metabolism slows and we are unconscious. So the final words on our mouths, the final thoughts in our minds should be our relationship with God. That statement is the final spoken thought before I go to bed. Although I always quietly add my own personal addendum that my children should stay in bed and not wake us up in the middle of the night.

Peace,

Rav Yitz