We worked so hard!!

We planned, shopped, prepared, cooked, and ate. 

A lot. 

And Passover is passing us by. The final days of the holiday are upon us. 

What spiritual energy is in the air? 

What choices can we make to take the power of Passover with us, long after the matza crumbs have been swept away?

The final days of Passover celebrate the splitting of the sea. Therefore they are celebrated as a major festival, as they testify to this seminal event. 

Over 3000 years ago, the Jewish people escaped Egypt. When The Egyptian leader, Pharaoh, realized he had allowed his slave force to flee, he had second thoughts. He corralled his army and gave chase to the Jewish nation. He cornered them at the edge of the Sea of Reeds. 

The Jewish people were trapped. 

Before them lay the sea and behind them the approaching Egyptian army. There seemed to be no escape. 

Moses raised his voice in prayer and Gd told him this is not the time for prayer, this is a time for action, the people should just go forth. 

Easier said than done. 

Going forward seemed suicide by drowning. 

One man, Nachshon the son of Aminadav, who was the Prince of the Tribe of Judah, took the charge to heart and began walking forward into the water. 

He continued walking as the water lapped around his ankles and he did not stop as the water rose until it reached his nose, and when it seemed his demise was inevitable, the unimaginable happened and the sea split. 

This Friday we commemorate that event that took place 3,334 years ago. 

We remember the person whose faith and initiative made it happen. 

The Talmud teaches us that a person can actualize their potential, complete their mission in one moment, in one hour, so to speak. 

That was Nachshon’s moment. 

He changed the trajectory of history with his action. 

It was heroic and historic. 

A Nachshon moment. 

Can everyone identify their Nachshon moment, when they took a stand and changed the world?

Maybe one can be Nachshon in another way?

By showing up again and again, no matter how difficult that may be. 

The Talmud continues after the statement that there are those who fulfill their mission in one moment, by stating that there are others who accomplish their mission over a great length of time, many hours, so to speak. 

This would translate into multiple actions drawn out over the longevity of time. 

This afternoon I attended a moving and historic event. 

A Torah was dedicated today by family and friends in honor of a 100 year old Holocaust survivor, Mr. Ben Hiller. 

Mr. Hiller was only 14 years old when he was captured by the Nazis. He escaped the Warsaw Ghetto and was recaptured and spent four years in various concentration camps. When he was liberated, Mr. Hiller was the only survivor of his immediate family of 9, and one of 17 survivors from his Polish town that had a population of 6,000 Jews pre-war. He suffered unimaginable torture. 

It would seem that he should have just given up. 

Mr. Hiller is a very slight man, not even 5 feet tall, but he is a giant. Despite all the adversity he suffered, he maintained a staunch belief in Gd and an unwavering commitment to the Torah. 

At the celebration this afternoon, he was surrounded by generations of children, grandchildren and great grandchildren who are following in his footsteps. 

He walked through the crucible of fire which was the Holocaust and he did not allow it to break him. 

He forged forward. 

Mr. Hiller had a lifetime of Nachshon moments,

one after another, 

one step after another,

which created a symphony of a life. 

A life he had to fight to build. 

In his words of blessing at the ceremony, Rabbi Ilan Feldman shared that during the Simchat Torah festivities when there is dancing celebrating the Torah, he would pick up Mr. Hiller on his shoulders and dance with him. 

Now, he said, Mr. Hiller, we are standing on your shoulders. 

Mr. Hiller is teaching us the lesson of a life mission which is crafted over many hours and many actions. 

Stepping forward despite the challenge. 

As we step into the last days of Passover we want to take advantage of its energy. 

Whether we complete our mission on planet earth with one action, or through a tapestry of small but consistent initiatives, we forge a path of meaning. 

Nachshon recognized that in this moment he could make a choice. Even in the most difficult of circumstances the Jewish people could make a decision to forge ahead as a Nation by taking a leap of faith, and support one another in their journey of commitment to Gd. He took one step at a time and forged forward despite the fact that his reality was about to engulf him. 

As we leave Egypt and celebrate Passover, we have the opportunity to leave behind the constrictions which are our own personal Egypt and break through our own obstacles which often may feel as vast as the sea. 

We can overcome those obstructions with a big leap, or one small step at a time. 

You choose!

Enjoy the last days of Passover. 

Chag Sameach!

Shabbat Shalom and so much love!