Parashat Nitzavim begins with Beneh Yisrael being very scared, and Moshe trying to reassure them.
Moshe had just completed issuing to the people the frightening warnings which we read in the previous parashah, Parashat Ki-Tavo, a list of 98 dreadful curses that would befall the people if they betrayed Hashem. These curses are so horrific that it is customary for the reader to lower his voice when reading this section. After Moshe described these curses, Rashi writes, the people’s faces started changing colors, frightened as they were by the prospect of their having to suffer these calamities. In order to encourage them, he proclaimed, אתם נצבים היום כולכם לפני ה' אלוקיכם – “You are all standing today, all of you, before Hashem your G-d.” Rashi explains that Moshe reassured the people by noting the fact that they were all standing there that day before Hashem.
This seems very difficult to understand. How does the fact that they were standing there on that day guarantee their protection from these curses in the future?
To begin answering this question, let us reflect upon something very frightening about our own lives.
There’s a very scary question that many of us try to avoid thinking about because it makes us uncomfortable, but every now and then it is bound to pop into our heads: Are we living, or just surviving?
As uncomfortable as it is, we should, once in a while, ask ourselves, “Am I living the life I dreamed of? Am I living the life I hoped to live? Am I living the life I want to live? Or is my life just about surviving and getting to the next day?”
This is such a scary question because what’s at stake is nothing less than the meaning and significance of life. If the answer is “surviving,” rather than “living,” it means that we live each day just to get the next day, and the next day is just to get us to the day after that, and so on. This is truly a scary thought.
The way Moshe allayed Beneh Yisrael’s fears after they heard the curses is the way we can allay our fears about the possibility that we are just surviving, and not living. אתם נצבים היום – we are standing here today. The answer to the scary questions posed above lies in our attitude towards היום, towards today.
Turning ALS Into a Blessing
There was a man named David who suffered from ALS, and after twelve years of suffering from this awful disease, during which time he lost control over his arms, legs and even face, his wife was asked how he was able to stay alive for so long. Her answer was astounding.
The wife explained that her husband participated in one of the worldwide programs run by the Dirshu organization, whose participants learn large amounts of Talmud and are occasionally tested on the material. Although he can neither write nor type, David never missed a test. He was able to answer the questions with special technology which enabled him to “type” on the computer by looking with his eyes at the letters he wanted to type. Each test took him fifteen hours (!!!!!). Nevertheless, he completed each one. And he always completed the test on time. He did not ask for any special dispensation. He studied all the material just like all the other participants, and he then spent fifteen hours answering the questions and emailed the test back to Dirshu on time, each and every time, without fail.
Once, he took one of Dirshu’s exams and had two questions left when he needed to be taken to a doctor’s appointment. He decided to take his laptop with him so he could answer the remaining two questions in the waiting room. As it turned out, though, in the waiting room he had time only to answer one of the two remaining questions. The deadline was early the next morning, and David insisted on not missing it, so he worked on the final answer in the car on the way home. But during the drive, the car hit a pothole, and David’s laptop went flying, smashing on the floor of the car. His entire exam was lost.
David was not to be deterred. He arrived home at 6pm, and sat in front of the home computer to begin the exam anew. He stayed awake until 5am the next morning, answering all 22 questions, and sent the exam in on time, as always.
Ironically, David – who needed to struggle to survive more than any of us – did not just survive, but lived. He was not content just making it to the next day. He insisted on living, on spending his day meaningfully and productively. And he did so precisely because he lived with a keen sense that each day could be his last. This awareness could paralyze a person, but it could also empower a person, energizing him to make each day count, to make each day meaningful.
The Talmud tells of a Rabbi who admonished his students to repent the day before their died. They asked him the obvious question: Nobody knows when he or she is going to die. How can we repent the day before we die, if we never know when we will die?
The Rabbi answered, “This is precisely the point. Repent each and every day, because you never know which day will be your last.”
People who feel that each day could be their last live each day with special vigor and energy. They work to make each and every day count, to make each and every day meaningful. David turned his condition into a great blessing, by being motivated to achieve more than he did before he fell ill, by recognizing that each and every day is a precious opportunity to do something great.
The Blessing Within the Curse
Returning to the frightening curses in Parashat Ki-Tavo, the Zohar tells that Rabbi Shimon once spoke with Eliyahu Ha’navi and expressed his fear over these curses. Rabbi Shimon asked the prophet to show him the ray of light within these dreadful tragedies, the glimmer of hope that the Jewish People could cling to in order to save themselves when, Heaven forbid, these terrible curses befall them.
Eliyahu told Rabbi Shimon that the salvation can be found in the worst curse in all the curses in this section.
Rabbi Shimon proceeded to search through the curses, and determined that the worst of all the tragedies was expressed in the following pasuk:
והיו חייך תלואים לך מנגד ופחדת לילה ויומם ולא תאמין בחייך.
Your life shall be hanging in the balance in front of you; you will be frightened night and day, and you will not trust your life.
In this pasuk, the Zohar tells, Rabbi Shimon found the glimmer of hope he was looking for.
When a person reaches the point when his life is “hanging in the balance,” and he does not “trust” his life, he receives special power. He makes sure to live, and not just survive. He makes sure to make the most of each day, and not just make it through each day in order to reach the next day. And this is the hidden blessing in the section of curses. Under the conditions described in this section, people could be driven to live meaningfully, to see each day as a precious opportunity to do something important and significant. People in that situation live every day to the fullest – and this is the model we need to follow.
“Of course,” he replied. He explained that gondola drivers must take a five-year course, followed by a 15-minute test which they must pass in order to earn their certification. Astoundingly, he told me that around 250 people participate in the course, but only 20 pass the exam at the end.
“And what happens to somebody who doesn’t pass?” I asked.
“He can try taking the test again five years later,” he said.
I found this remarkable. Imagine the pressure before the exam, knowing that if you failed, you need to wait another five years to try again!
As I thought about it, this system began to make some sense. If a person knows that this is his only chance to get certified for another five years, he will take this exam very, very seriously. He will put every ounce of effort into it. Knowing that this is a rare and precious opportunity, he will give it his all.
This is true of life, as well.
Why do so many of us spend our time just surviving, rather than living? Why do we find ourselves wasting time on vanity? Because we fail to realize that each day is the only opportunity we will ever have to live that day. We see our lives as just a long continuum – one day which leads to another, which leads to another, which leads to another. Moshe Rabbeinu teaches us that the way to avoid the curses is אתם נצבים היום – to recognize the unique power of היום, of today, to realize each day that it is a precious gift and opportunity. It doesn’t matter whether it’s Pesach, Yom Kippur, our wedding day, our child’s wedding day, the first day on a new job, an ordinary frigid day in January or a typical sweltering day in July – every day is special, every day can be meaningful. If we live with a sense of והיו חייך תלואים לך, with a keen awareness that today’s opportunities will never return again, then we will live, and not just survive.
Five Questions
Jimmy Valvano was a legendary college basketball coach who died of cancer in 1993 at the age of 47. Two months before his passing, when he was already gravely ill and it was clear that he did not have much longer to live, he delivered what would become a very famous speech in front of a huge audience at an awards ceremony. In this speech, knowing that he would soon be gone, he appealed to his audience to appreciate every day of their lives. He implored them to make sure to do three things each day: to laugh, to think, and to cry. If somebody did all three at some point during the day, Valvano said, then he has had a good day.
I would like to suggest a Jewish version of Valvano’s doctrine. For a day to be truly powerful, I think, we need to be able to answer “yes” to the following five questions:
· Did I learn something today?
· Did I connect to Hashem today?
· Did I give something to somebody today?
· Did I uplift somebody today?
· Did I grow today?
1) No matter how old and wise a person is, there is always more to learn. The Torah is infinite, and a thousand lifetimes will not suffice to master it all. We are here to learn as much as we can, to make sure that each day we learn something we did not know the day before.
2) Even if we pray three times a day, this does not necessarily mean that we have connected to Hashem. We connect to Hashem by praying sincerely, with emotion, and by reflecting on how much He does for us and how much we depend on Him. Deepening our mental and emotional bond with Hashem is something we should be doing, to one extent or another, each and every day.
3) We all have something to give. Some are able to give charity. Others are able to give advice. We are all able to help somebody in some way, whether it’s running an errand or doing a simple favor. Giving should be on our “to do” list every day.
4) One does not have to be a professional inspirational speaker to uplift people. This can be done simply by picking up the phone and calling a friend or family member whom we haven’t spoken to in a while. It can be done by going over to a new face in shul to extend a warm, friendly greeting. It can be done by complimenting somebody for something they did. It can be done by warmly thanking the cashier at the checkout counter and wishing him or her a good day. Every day we are given many opportunities to make somebody feel good.
5) We are here to grow. We will never be perfect, but every day we should try to be better – in some small way, and to some small extent – than we were the day before.
אתם נצבים היום. We should try to live each day like it might be our last, seizing the precious opportunities that it presents to us.
One day my wife came into the house and told me that something was left on our windshield.
“Oh no, a ticket!” I groaned.
“No, it’s not a ticket,” she assured me. She showed me a card with a big sign that said “STOP,” and an arrow pointing to the inspection sticker. It then said in smaller lettering, “You’re due for an inspection. Get your car inspected before you get a ticket!”
On the corner, it said that this service was done as a chesed in a certain person’s memory.
I thought this was something truly amazing. Somebody decided to print out these notices, walk up and down the streets in the neighborhood, look at the inspection stickers on the cars’ windshields, and alert people whose cars were due for inspection. This person did not need lots of money or any exceptional skill to do this beautiful favor. All he or she needed was the desire to do something nice for people. This is a beautiful example of making every day special, of finding opportunities to live meaningfully.
Calling the President
In our Rosh Hashanah liturgy, we proclaim, היום הרת עולם – that this is the day commemorating the world’s creation. According to many commentators, this means that Rosh Hashanah marks the final of the six days during which the world came into existence. This was the day that the first people, Adam and Havah, were created.
Interestingly, as some commentators have pointed out, it was on this same day – the day of Adam and Havah’s creation – that they sinned by partaking of the forbidden fruit, in response to which G-d decreed that humans should die. Death came into being on the day Adam and Havah were first made – the day we observe as Rosh Hashanah.
This might be one of the hidden messages of Rosh Hashanah. When Adam and Havah learned that they would not live forever, that their time in this world was limited, it must have changed their entire mindset towards their existence. Suddenly, there was an urgency, there was a certain focus and seriousness. Every passing day brought them one day closer to their end. And this is what we commemorate on Rosh Hashanah. On this day, we are to spend some time contemplating our lives, and asking the scary question of whether we are living the way we want to live and the way we should live. We are to reflect upon the transience of life, and realize that every day is an opportunity that will never return.
A third-grade teacher came into class one morning, took out her phone, dialed some numbers, and put the phone on the desk.
“My phone is on speaker,” she told the class, “and I want you all to listen very carefully.”
After a few rings, the children heard the voice on the other end: “Hello, this is the White House. How can I direct your call?”
“Hello, good morning,” the teacher replied. “I am a schoolteacher, and I am standing now in front of a class of wonderful third graders, who would very much like to speak to the President.”
“I’m sorry,” the secretary began responding.
“These children are all loyal, law-abiding, proud citizens of the United States, and they would really like to speak to the President.”
“The President is very busy now, and cannot take calls.”
“You don’t understand,” the teacher insisted. “These are really wonderful children. They have great respect for the leader of our nation, and would love to speak to him.”
“They are welcome to write letters to the President,” the secretary said.
“Will he receive their letters?” the teacher asked.
“The President receives and reads mail every single day,” the secretary assured the teacher.
“But does he read all of them?”
“Well, he receives about 10,000 letters a day, and he reads around ten of them.”
“So, you’re telling me that a student of mine writes the President a letter, there is a 1/1000th chance of him seeing it?”
“Yes, Ma’am.”
“Ok, thank you very much for your time.”
The teacher then hung up the phone and spoke to the class:
“You see, no matter how badly we want to speak to the President, and no matter what’s on our minds, and what problems we have, or how much we respect him and want to connect to him, he won’t make time for us. Even if we write him a letter, the chances of him seeing it are one in a thousand.
“Hashem is much greater and much more important than the President. He is the King over the entire universe. He is in charge of billions of people. And yet, anytime we feel we want to speak to Him, He makes time for us. He’s always eager to hear what we have to say, and He always listens. We don’t even have to pick up a phone. We just need to talk to Him sincerely.”
Anyone who is familiar with the Rosh Hashanah prayers knows that these prayers are not about asking for a good year. Very little of the Rosh Hashanah prayer service is spent asking Hashem for the things we need and want – health, material comfort, peace, long life, and so on. The theme and focal point of the Rosh Hashanah prayers is Hashem’s Kingship. Throughout the prayers, we are speaking about Hashem’s greatness and power, how He is the King over the world who exercises complete control and authority over all of us and over everything that happens on earth.
And this is what makes Rosh Hashanah such a special and exciting day. We focus on the fact that Hashem, the King over the universe, chose us to be His servants, and wants us to have a close relationship with Him. When we focus on how great Hashem is, we realize how important a job we have, having been chosen as His servants. Once we realize this, we cannot go on just surviving. Hashem did not appoint us as His servants just so we can live one day to the next. He appointed us so we can accomplish and achieve. We focus on this message intensely on Rosh Hashanah, but it is something we need to tell ourselves every day of our lives.
With this mindset, we can make every day valuable, fulfilling and significant – precisely the kind of day that every day is supposed to be.