The rabbis in Bnei Brak stayed up all night taking about the Exodus… but why? Why would one do such a thing? These rebbes are wise people; they know the story, so why go over it continually? Key point…They studied this story all NIGHT… in the darkness…They were trying to find Hashem within the story in a time of darkness… which is hard… a lot of times in every day life it is hard to find and feel Hashem in situations in which spiritual consciousness isn’t so evident, when things are dark… it is in these situations that we need faith… we need to feel Hashem in the darkness and have faith that He is there, unconditionally… we need to have faith that where we are going is where we are intended to be; even if the destination and outcome isn’t so clear, we need to have faith that in leaving Mitzarim we will end up in a better place…a place better than dwelling in the comfort and familiarity of slavery… take a leap of faith…have faith in all of the other Jews and people struggling to find the courage to leave there own Mitzarim, their own place of narrowness (zar) within their souls… the unity of our Jewish people and the dreams of Yerushaylim make way for progress to a better life to genuine happiness...
So after studying the Exodus for hours and hours in the night trying to find Hashem they were interrupted by their students whom announced that it was time to say the morning Shema. The morning Shema: Hear, O Israel: Hashem is our G-d Hashem, the One and Only… a summary of faith that Hashem IS there, the One and the Only… no matter what, Hashem IS there…Why do you think we cover our eyes when we say the Shema? Yes of course it is to help us focus on the words we are saying but it is also to gain the consciousness and symbolize finding G-d within the darkness. The Shema even starts out by saying HEAR O Israel as opposed to SEE O Israel reinforcing that Hashem’s presence isn’t always so obvious and right in front of our eyes… Wow… Pesach… so much to think about… leaving Mitzarim having faith, moving on, making big decisions with out knowing if things will turn out the way expected, making decisions that may not seem so coherent to others but feel right within the heart and within the soul… Pesach, such a blessing to be able to dig deep and be reminded of the journey every time I make hamotzi and crunch into a piece of matzah, continually being reminded that I am not free yet, I need to get down to the basics, just the flour and water of my soul to see what it will take to leave Mitzarim in its entirety.
7 days of matzah cream cheese and jelly sandwiches, 7 days of matzah Pizza, 7 days of checking for kitniyot labels, and a strong power filled day of eating my very own homemade tuna and matzah sandwich in an Arab hotel restaurant in Petra… bemet… it really did happen…I was in my first non- kosher place in over 4 months and I pulled out my own Pesach friendly meal with my own utensils, said my brachot and smiled…devotion, faith, love, dedication…7 days of thinking, 7 days to think about what it means for me to cross the red sea…
The Red Sea, an act of G-d…truly…a faith internally, a faith in our people, a faith in our future, a faith in Hashem… I was talking some Torah with my puzzle piece, and he was explaining a Torah that he read that said something to the effect that the two things that are just as difficult as crossing the red sea is establishing a career and finding your soul mate… talk about leaving Mitzarim… having faith to be assertive and make decisions that will determine an alteration in the rest of ones life and here we are at the red sea, at the crossing the final push to making a decision that can never be retracted…and we did it… we pushed through, we walked along the naked ocean floor, we moved through the waters with faith to a place of no regret… to a place of new undiscovered territory…greater light… greater breath… and a more defined faith….just do it…Everything has been happening as it should, Pesach was such a blessing…really such an opportunity for instigated growth…my mom and step dad have been in town and I have gotten the chance to spend time with family, which has been such a constant value in my contemplation for moving forward. Being with family, feeling the love, feeling familiarity and sharing a space, that beforehand for them wasn’t fully understood… but now once again… clarity was obtained… we dwelled and experienced within a mutual element that enabled for indescribable understanding and acceptance to subtly take place… they got it, they felt it… and I couldn’t have asked for anything more… We toured Petra together, we explored the Holy tunnels of the Kotel together, and we toured Israel from up near the heavens in an armored IDF (Israeli defense Force) helicopter, met with soldiers watched mock sneak attacks on smugglers crossing from Egypt into our Holy land… We flew from Har Sagi to Har Harif (both of which are in the deep deserts of the Israel- Egypt border, we met with female soldiers my age that have decide to demonstrate their love for Israel in ways different from mine but significantly similar and just as genuine, we stood inside of a bomb shelter that we donated last year in Ashkelon, a bomb shelter that saved the lives on fifty people during the recently passed Aza operation. What a blessing… what a Pesach… Given the opportunity to literally gain perspective from up above…wow… but now here we are, Pesach is over and we are literally tasting freedom again…but still we have not reach redemption until we have been given the Torah… days of counting, days on consciousness, days of hairy legs and days of mourning souls lie ahead… everything is connected…don’t forget… life is a process not a magic trick… be in it… feel it… and I ask Hashem to bless each of us to reach a place of clarity in our lives a clarity equivalent to freedom- whether in terms of figuring out what to do post graduation, or contemplating which major to finally settle down in or which classes to take; or pondering how to spiritually advance in ones journey or how to bring the light of Yerushalyim into you heart and soul regardless of where your physical body dwells, Please lead us, unite us… Blessings and light to all, missing each of you… תרבחו ותסעדו…
Thank you for your inspirations and love
"It is good to thank Hashem and to sing praise to your name O Exalted One, to relate your kindness in the dawn AND YOUR FAITH IN THE NIGHTS" ... in the day we speak of Gods kindness, but in the nighttimes of our souls, that kindness can be that much harder to see-- like you said we need to LISTEN-- the small still voices that are calling our names, that in the words of the haggada will guide us out from our narrowest places, our mitzrayims, HIGHER AND HIGHER "from slavery to freedom, from sorrow to joy, from mourning to festivity, FROM DARKNESS TO GREAT LIGHT, from servitude to REDEMPTION. Let us, therefore, say a new song before Him HALLELUYAH!!!"
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