“And Eisav said, ‘Behold, I am going to die so what do I need the birthright for?’ ” (Bereishis 25:32)
Eisav returned home hungry and exhausted after a rage-filled rampage of murder and promiscuity. Chazal explain that these acts were a rebellious reaction to the death of his saintly grandfather. His brother, Yaakov, understood Eisav well and seized the moment. He offered him a steaming bowl of red lentil soup — immediate tangible satisfaction — in exchange for an intangible piece of spirituality, his birthright.
Eisav, who had no regard for the birthright, traded it for soup. However, when Yaakov then claims his allotment and receives the blessings from Yitzchak, Eisav goes into a frenzy. He wants to kill Yaakov over something which he’d just claimed was useless. Why the complete turnaround? (Rabbi Mordechai Kamenetzky, Parsha Parables)
Our Shabbos seudos do not start with Kiddush. Instead, there’s a strict family minhag that begins with chanting:
“I get to sit next to Mommy at this seudah!”
“No, you sat next to Tatty last seudah!
“Nuh-uh, it’s MY turn.”
My husband and I have seriously considered buying a round boardroom-type table, with an opening in the center. He and I will sit in the center on swivel chairs and turn around throughout the seudah so each child can’t be jealous of the proximity of his sibling to his parents.
