This week’s Torah portion is called VaYetzei, which means he went out. 

It is the continuation of the story of our Patriarch Jacob who must run away from home in order to escape the murderous intentions of his vengeful brother Esau. 

Jacob’s story is a story of exile. But if we look deeper, there is a great deal of inspiration embedded in the story which can direct us in times of challenge. 

Jacob begins his journey and dreams a dream. He sees angels ascending and descending a ladder and he understands that Gd is sending angels to watch over him in his journey. That comforts him as he leaves his home. 

Jacob arrives in the city of Charan, the dwelling place of his mother’s family. He is hoping to find a bride from amongst his relatives. 

Jacob arrives at the well, the local gathering place, and is surprised to see the local shepherds lounging about. When he questions their work ethic, they point to the well which is stopped up by a large boulder. They have to wait till all the shepherds gather in order to use their collective strength to move the rock. 

All of a sudden Rachel, a cousin of Jacob’s,approaches to water her flock. When Jacob sees her, he effortlessly lifts of the huge boulder by himself. 

We can suggest that his love for Rachel overcame his limitations, it is as if gravity lost its meaning when he thought of her. 

There are people who can clip our wings, there are people who give us the wings to soar. 

When Jacob recognized his eternal partner, he was given the opportunity to express his strength and potential. 

Rabbi Moshe Weinberger shares another understanding of the story of the boulder and the well.  

The well represents the wellspring of talents and gifts we all have. However, many people, even the most talented, fail because of a “boulder”, something blocking access to one’s potential and talents. In their conversation with Jacob, the shepherds utter the phrase, “we can’t do it”.  It’s impossible! 

That is what is holding them back. 

We, like the shepherds, are often deterred by the  “we can’t do it” attitude. 

Jacob, on the other hand, believed in the opportunity to overcome challenges and succeed despite the obstacles in his path. 

Everyone has a dream to accomplish something big in life, but the “I can’t do it” boulder is preventing the dream from becoming a reality. 

Jacob faced many challenges, but he forged ahead with an “I Can” philosophy, looking at the boulder in a different way. 

There was once a king who wanted to test his son. 

He brought a huge boulder into the courtyard and instructed his son that he had one week to move the boulder, but he had to do it on his own, without enlisting help. 

For a whole week the son sweated it out. He brought in donkeys and pulleys and all kinds of heavy equipment, but after a week, the rock had not budged an inch. When the king came to see what had happened, his son admitted defeat. At that point the King brought in a hammer and a chisel and reduced the boulder to a pile of pebbles. 

He told his son: when something seems insurmountable, just break it down into smaller rocks, just chunk it up, and then you can deal with it one piece at a time. 

We can achieve the greatness that is ours. We know we have “angels” that will help us soar, that Gd sends to accompany us in the journey. 

We are so beloved by Gd, as Nili Couzins likes to say, if Gd had a refrigerator, your picture would be on it. So Gd believes in us, and we need to believe in ourselves as well. 

Like a bad dream, the blockages which hinder us are only a part of our imaginations. We can connect to a different stone, the foundation stone from which the world was created, and tap into the possibility of using the stones, or challenges in our path,  as stepping stones as we go out on our journey to greatness, and to ourselves. 

Shabbat Shalom and so much love.