There’s an old slogan taken from the title of a play written by two Jewish men sons of European immigrants who humorously suggested that in life “You can’t take it with you.” Not very funny considering how little they took from the age-old values of the “Alte Heim” to the “Goldene Medinah”!
While it’s true that all of us will eventually embark on a journey to a world that requires no luggage in the world we live in currently you can take a lot with you. Material possessions can traverse oceans continents and even atmospheres! On the other hand taking our spiritual possessions through time requires no material cost but requires concentrated effort and mental focus.
We’ve just experienced the whirlwind month of Tishrei. Our spiritual journey has taken us to places of heart-wrenching personal introspection exalted closeness with the Ribono shel Olam and joyous celebration of the culmination of that experience. Yet the rainy (we hope brachah-filled rain for Eretz Yisrael) days and nights of Cheshvan can easily seep into the walls of our souls and can find the cracks in the walls of our emunah ultimately transforming the experiences of Tishrei into old and moldy memories.
We can take it with us! Rather than allowing ourselves to stagnate we must use the Cheshvan experience to heed the message of the coming choref winter. Rav Samson Raphael Hirsch teaches that the word choref is connected to the word cherpah shame. It is a time of retreat into oneself sequestering ourselves behind closed doors wrapping our bodies in layers of concealment. Yet this very process is also a huge opportunity for self-discovery. The path to Cheshvan was blazed by Tishrei and each day of our upcoming year can actualize the messages that travel from Tishrei to Cheshvan.
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