Shaaaloooom swweeeeteest friends!!!!!
A huuuuuge mazel toooov to my beloved friends R' and Mrs. Aviel Hillman on the birth of Yisrael Chaim Yitzchak!!!! May he be the source of light and great pride to his parents and all of the world!!! A special mazel tov to the grandparents, uncles, aunts etc.!!
This dvar Torah should be a zchus for my most beloved friend Moshe Yehuda ben Pesha Dina that he should have ONLY good things!! He deserves it. And Hashem knows why but he is quiet and humble about it.
Also lizchus my sweet beloved friend R' Yehoshua Meir ben Rochel Sarah for good health and mazel for he and his family!
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In the HISTORIC encounter between Yaakov and Esav [known to some a "Ee-saw". Reminds me of the story of the two "natives" who saw strange looking men walking around mid-town Manhattan wearing long black coats and black hats with beards and long side curls. So one guy goes "Who is dem guys?" His friend answers "Ha-see-dem". His friend replies "I see dem too. But who is dem guys?"] Yaakov sends some really nice gifts of animals. [How come he didn't send any dogs? I think it is because they were in the Middle East and all of the dogs seem to live on the Upper West Side]. Esav is like "Keep it" because יש לי רב - I have lots. Yaakov says "NO, you take it. G-d has been so kind to me וכי יש לי כל" - I have EVERYTHING.
C'mon!? Who has EVERYTHING??? Nobody. Mark Zuckerberg has over 60 billion dollars [but who is counting? he is...:-)] but he doesn't have everything [for example, he is not on my email list so he doesn't enjoy my weekly divrei Torah and has to find poor humor elsewhere. Plus, he doesn't have a Jewish wife to make him kugel and tzimmes like we all do - unless you are yourself a Jewish wife [present or future] who is a master cook. For all those who take offense at my implication that Jewish women are good cooks please forgive me because I really mean it. It is a miracle that on a good day while holding weights I am barely 130 pounds despite 46 consecutive years of having a Jewish mother and then halfway through a Jewish wife as well. Skinny but well fed]. How can Yaakov say that he has כל - everything? That is a stretch. [What does what I do before I go jogging and what Yaakov said have in common??]
Moreover, Chazal say that Yaakov tasted Olam Haba in this world and derive this lesson from the pasuk יש לי כל. How does that make sense? Who gets Olam Haba in this world???
Nobody. Everybody has problems. Every family has issues, usually serious ones. There are relationship problems between siblings, between parents, between children and parents. In-law issues. Mental health problems. Physical health problems. Financial problems and concerns, pressures and worries [How I am going to pay the rent this month? Very simple, don't pay it...], difficulties raising children, work related issues and stress, things in the house that aren't working, sleep problems, professional sports teams that aren't performing up to par problems, Chazanim-and-Rabbis-that-hold-you-prisoner-problems, anxiety about the future and past, dreams that were shattered, relationships that were broken, trust that was breached, shampoo that finished and you only realized it in the middle of your shower, bumper to bumper on the GW, waiters who forget about you and then expect a tip etc. etc. WE ALL HAVE PROBLEMS. Yaakov Avinu ALSO had problems. So what is this "יש לי כל" all about? And to go so far as to call his life "Olam Haba"? A bit much to digest...
So here is the secret friends!:-)!!!
Every morning we say a bracha שעשה לי כל צרכי - We thank Hashem for providing us with ALL of our needs. Meaning, that we have WHATEVER we need and whatever we DON'T have, we need to NOT have [at this time]. It is a matter of perspective. We can DECIDE that Hashem knows best what we need and He makes sure we have it - and He really does. So we really do have everything. Not everything that exists or everything that we think we desire but everything that we really need.
That is the way Yaakov felt and that is how he could say that he has EVERYTHING. If that is the attitude then it is really a taste of the world to come in this world. BLISS. Sometimes, I am REALLY tired so I cuddle up in bed and tell myself that I am going to spend the next few minutes [until I fall asleep] pretending that I have no problems and that life is perfect. It is blissful. It is also true. Life IS perfect. We define perfection as things being as I desire. But we have to shift our perspective and describe perfect as the situation Hashem decided would be best for us in order to fulfill our purpose on earth - meaning our present reality.
Esav was different. He said יש לי רב - I have a rabbi. In life you need more than just a rabbi. You need a Rebbetzin too. A rabbi needs his rebbetzin. They are a team. But that is not what Esav meant. יש לי רב means that I have a LOT. A lot but I can also have more. And I want MORE.
Yaakov said יש לי כל. I have it ALL. [I also have it "all" because my (English) first name has "ALL" in it]. You too, can have it all. If you just decide to believe that what you have is ALL. Because you do. Even your problems are part of your wealth. Together with everything else they allow you to fulfill your purpose on earth.
Sweet friends!! May we all merit to always feel that we lack nothing.
Much love,
Me
