I’m sure I’m not saying anything earth-shattering, but I continue to be inspired by the perfect balance Torah seeks to imbue both our personal and societal lives.
In this aliyah, the Torah comes to teach us about important balances in the desire to fight and the work and the desire to be at home with one’s spouse, and the desire to make money and do so with a sense of security (literally and figuratively) while not threatening another’s livelihood. In doing so, the Torah not only instructs us that this is the way things be but, of course, guarantees they can be this way as well.
Turning to a deeply personal point, this is the kind of balance I do desperately need right now. I am working non-stop, and my professional life is all-consuming. It is true that I feel a holy calling to it, so it is not a drain and is actually quite energizing, but it is also, for sure, taking away from my “delight” in my children and, more importantly, my wife. The latter understands and wholeheartedly supports this season, but my goodness, I miss her so very much as I toil night after night, away from her and from our relationship. This is, apparently, a struggle every man has faced - sure, the Torah puts it in the context of war and the first year of marriage, but the message is clear: it will always be a struggle. At this point, I pray not for a cessation to work nor a total sacrifice of that relationship in pursuing my own professional battle - and law is most definitely a battle - but rather the kind of ease and “delight” (such a beautiful word, even in translation) set forth here.
The other closely related balance again strikes the middle ground between financial growth (specifically through lending) and not ever taking away another’s livelihood in the course. One of my deepest fears in this business is that I will make a mistake so severe and so costly that they will come and not only drain my bank accounts but also take my house and leave me and mg family homeless. And of course more than any embarrassment is the real-life horror this would inflict on my family. How much better would our society be if, truly, people could take business risks in terms of lending and borrowing money and know that such debts were collectible (at least until the seventh and fiftieth year) but that their ability to survive, to eat, to be clothed, and thrive would be untouched. The sheer removal of collective anxiety would be amazing and open the door for so much blessing.
From the deepest recesses of my soul: a prayer. A prayer to conquer my professional enemies and have them delivered in my hands while on the same day returning home and enjoying uninterrupted times of delight with my wife. Please, H’, let it be so, immediately. And may I continue to take calculated professional risks and know that something is at stake while removing the fear that everything is. Please let it be so! Amen.
Amen!
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