For many of us, the period of Yamim Noraim is like a door that constantly opens and closes, but always remains in the same place. We constantly “move” – we go to the synagogue, we recite all the prayers, we do the mitzvot, but we get nowhere. We end up like the door by the synagogue entrance – that swings open and closed hundreds upon hundreds of times on the holidays, but ends up in the exact same spot…
Why? Why we don’t we ever get anywhere?
Because of different thoughts that run around in our minds, such as:
1) All in all, I’m ok. And I’m a lot better than many other people I know. I make mistakes, but I’m fine the way I am.
2) It’s really hard to change. I’m a busy person. I have enough to worry about as it is. And I have so much to change. Why should I bother?
I imagine that one, two, or all of these thoughts sounds awfully familiar…
The response to these thoughts, I believe, is the custom of Tashlich – the prayer recited at a body of water on Rosh Hashanah.
No, we do not go to the river to throw our sins into it. Judaism does not believe in this kind of “magical” atonement.
The source of Tashlich is the story of Avraham Avinu as he made his way to akedat Yitzhak – to fulfill G-d’s command to slaughter his son. The Midrash relates that the Satan tried to prevent Avraham from going to the place where Hashem told him to sacrifice his son, and so the Satan formed a river that blocked Avraham’s path. Avraham walked into the water until it reached his neck. He was not deterred. As difficult as this was, he insisted on doing what Hashem wanted from him. When the water was at his neck, he pleaded to Hashem, and the water subsided.
We remind ourselves of this story by going to a river on Rosh Hashanah.
Why?
Because this story must be our response to the thoughts that discourage us from growing and changing.
It is not good enough to be “fine,” or “more or less ok.” And “it’s really hard” is no excuse. We are the children of Avraham, Yitzchak and Yaakov. And they’ve taught us that we can – and must – be great. They showed us that we don’t give up. When Avraham walked into that river, he established the mindset that is with us forever – the mindset of, “I’m not going to stop,” the mindset of, “I’m striving for greatness, and nothing will ever get in my way!”
As Avraham Avinu’s grandchildren, we must demand of ourselves greatness. It is not enough to be GOOD. We need to strive to be GREAT.
Whenever we think we’re ok the way we are, or it’s too hard to change, we need to remember our grandfather, Avraham Avinu, walking through that raging river to fulfill the most impossible of missions. He embedded within the very fabric of our nation the concept that we can and must do whatever it takes to be great, and not just be “ok.”
During this period of teshuvah, this is what we need to keep in mind. We must not be deterred by challenges. We must not be frightened by struggle. We are Avraham’s grandchildren – and he taught us to be great. Let’s do it!