Diary Entry From My Journey #22

Why do I live in Yerushalayim?

1] My wife and children live there and I really like them.

2] Because there is a bigger mitzva to live in Yerushalayim than in the rest of Eretz Yisroel [as discussed in the all-too-obscure sefer Shiras Yitzchak in the preface].

3] Yerushalayim is called by Tehillim "Masos kol ha'aretz" - the most joyous place on earth.

But what am I to do in galus Manhattan, from where do I draw wellsprings of joy? I think the answer is as follows: Whenever I daven, bentch or say al hamichya, I mention Yerushalayim [and when I daven I even face Yerushalayim]. At those moments I have to connect my soul to Yerushalayim which is possible because the soul is not limited by time or space. Just like we can love someone who is no longer alive and feel connected, so too we can feel connected to Yerushalayim though not physically there. The Heilige Baal Shem Tov said that you are where your thoughts are.

May my thoughts always be connected to Yerushalayim and Kedushah.