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Keep on Soaring

By: Mrs, Shelby Binstock


In this week’s parsha, we find a very interesting turn in character of Bnei Yisrael. Seemingly out of the blue Bnei Yisrael turns to Moshe and says, "zacharnu et hadag asher nochal b’mitzrayim chinam" (We remember the fish we ate in Egypt free of charge). In his commentary on Torah, Darchei Musar, Rav Yaacov Neiman z”l poses the obvious question. How could it be that the dor midbar or the dor hade’a as chazal call it, who reached the level of prophecy, could reach such a low level of desiring food? How could a generation of people that witnessed the utmost miracles and revelations of Hashem come to such a point where they were worried about onions, watermelon and fish? Rav Neiman answers profoundly: “Ashrei adam mifached tamid”. A person needs to constantly be on guard to prevent the falls that could potentially happen in their lives. It is so easy to think that we are beyond certain sins or challenges in our lives, and it is easy to think that maybe since we’ve grown past something now, that it won’t return to test me again. But the opposite is true; we have to constantly be on guard to ensure that we continually grow and overcome those same challenges. If left without reevaluation or rededication we can easily stumble to that lowest level again.



It is coming to the end of an amazing year, in which, girls have grown to great new heights. However, with the end of a year comes the beginning of new challenges or should I rather say old. When the girls leave the school they may think that they have elevated themselves past certain difficulties they had, or that they are now on a new higher level. But if there is something we can take from the dor midbar, it is to constantly be working to grow and improve because if not it could lead to a regression maybe even further back than where we started. As the Em HaBayit I have had the privilege to see these girls grow tremendously and I fully recognize the growth they have done. I also know the hard work that each and everyone one put in to their growth and it’s because of this that I’m not worried. The former mashgiach of Lomza yeshiva, Rav Rosenstein zt’l gave a different answer to why the dor hamidbar fell. It was because they didn't reach the level of prophecy through their own hard work but rather through Hashem giving it to them freely in order to receive the Torah. Had they have worked on it themselves; they would not have fallen so quickly. Because of this I am confident that the girls who put in so much effort to grow will continue to soar.



Shabbat Shalom.



 



 


 

 

 

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