Shalom to my Bnai Shalom family!
It's almost officially summer. Soon, the school year will have finished and students will be on summer break. For some, that will mean a summer job or internship, for some it will mean day or overnight camp and for some it will mean a family trip or vacation. If past years are any indication, about 75% of the country's families are planning to take summer vacations and, despite rising fuel costs, AAA projects that over 80% of those trips will involve driving.
If you have ever undertaken a long driving trip, you know that they have both advantages and disadvantages. Driving trips are flexible: you choose how long you will travel each day and where you will go. You can easily change your plans along the route and stay longer in a place if you want. It can be scenic, especially if you venture from the interstates, and more economical than flying. But, the wear and tear of your vehicle is a hidden cost. There is always the possibility of a flat tire or a breakdown. Long stretches of driving are physically and mentally taxing and you are likely to hit traffic each day, making the journey from place to place even longer. No matter how much we plan, something unexpected happens. Or, as grandmothers in the Old Country used to say, "Mann tracht un Gott lacht": "Man plans and God laughs."
But our summer journeys are nothing compared to the Israelites' trek b'midbar, through the wilderness, under the blazing hot desert sun. Imagine an open-ended trip without a map, without a cooler of water and food, without road stops. And pile onto that new rules, lots to carry, hostile people in the country around you, and having absolutely no idea of where you are actually going and how long it will take to get there. Is it any wonder that some of those travelers got fed up, rebelled, and thought it might be better to just go back to slavery in Egypt? After all, Egypt was harsh, but it was familiar. It was predictable. The Israelites traveled for forty years and eventually made their way to the promised land, a land flowing with milk and honey.
This summer as we recount their travels and perhaps do some traveling ourselves, may we choose destinations that will delight and inspire us, and may we remember that the ups and downs of our journeys are what make for the best stories.
Kol Tuv – All the best!
All the best… and a Happy Shavuot!
Rabbi Adrienne :)
Rabbi@bnaishalomeaston.org
Cell Phone: 609-577-6842
SERVING THE JEWISH COMMUNITY OF EASTON SINCE 1839