Today was garbage day pickup in my neighborhood.
I drove down the street and saw two different neighbors taking out their trash.
Very pedestrian activity.
Very normal behavior.
I didn’t think much of it.
As I drove on - I had an epiphany.
These two people had something in common.
These two people are not just “regular” people.
Each of these people experienced great challenge in their lives and prevailed.
Each of these people were faced with very grim outcomes to their situations and they overcame nonetheless.
Sometimes during the course of those events they appeared surly or short tempered. But they were navigating harsh circumstances. They were sensitive to the comments made by others who did not understand the depth of the pain they were experiencing.
Yet they persevered and now were blissfully ignorant of my thoughts on their successes as they were engaged in the mundane activity of taking out the trash.
I know this about them because they happen to be my friends.
But if you did not know their story you would never know these are actually heroic individuals.
Just watching them take out their trash makes them seem so average because you just see a tiny fraction of who they truly are at their core.
But to me they are superheroes.
Hanoch Daum is an Israeli comedian. He plays to sold out crowds and writes books which are parodies on Israeli life.
That is who Hanoch Daum seems to be.
But there is much more than meets the eye.
Hanoch Daum has become the spokesperson of the Israeli man or woman about town.
In many of his posts he doesn’t focus on humor. Instead he tells the back story we would not know about a brave soldier who lost his life in service of our country. He will highlight the story of a soldier who has lost most of his livelihood as he has been at service and Hanoch will post about the soldiers business and ask the country to support him. Of he will highlight the greatness of our soldiers and pray we will merit their sacrifices.
Hanoch posted a picture today of an amputee. A man who lost his leg in combat.
The picture evokes sympathy. We feel so sorry for this young man and the loss of his limb and the reality that this disability will hamper him forever.
But then we read the soldier’s letter that Hanoch posts.
Hanoch shares the soldiers story. His name is Amit Brenner and he has created a speech about his situation called “A leg will not grow”. In his speech Amit shares that the unfortunate loss of his leg, the incident that has happened to him is just a tool. “The real message is about the day after. On how we choose to look at reality as a starting point and not as the end of the road, on appreciating the obvious and the resilience that each of us has inside - even when it seems everything has fallen apart.”
Amit Brenner seems to be a handicapped individual, but that is a very narrow view of who he is. Amit is actually a soaring spirit whose feet don’t touch the ground.
And Hanoch Daum is not simply a comic, he is a prophet of positivity, an elevated person who uses his platform to lift all in his orbit by seeing them for who they really are.

This week I start my message to you with a request for prayers.
Our dear Batsheva has a nephew who was injured in a terrorist attack in Jerusalem today. His situation is critical and the need for your prayers is acute.
Please take a moment to say a chapter of Psalms, Tehillim in the merit of a total and complete recovery for
Yonah Ben Shayna Rivka.
May our prayers serve as a guard and shield for Yoni and with Gd’s help, speedy healing.

https://www.jwcatlanta.org/tehillim_psalms_chapter_130

This is a link to JWCatlanta’s website and one of the chapters of Psalms that can be recited. I will keep you updated and pray to share good news.

Any mitzvot we do can also be accrued for the merit of someone who is sick or struggling in any way.
One of the most powerful tools we have are our mouths. We can use our speech for prayer and good words, or we can sully our lips with gossip and slander.
In Biblical times the reaction to This week we have a double Torah portion Tazria -Metzora which focus on laws of purity and impurity as well as laws regarding speech. Loshon Hara or evil speech would result in a physical manifestation which looked like leprosy. This is a unique case of spiritual malady presenting with physical symptoms.
Nowadays we do not see a physical reaction to our negative speech. Although perhaps the pit in the stomach or the feeling of personal shame that one feels after demeaning another, is akin to that physical reality.