To my Dear Kallas,

There is something so hopeful about Nissan.

Geula remembered, Geula awaited.

I think that if we take the time, and have the headspace, we can gain strength from our own personal “Geulos”; times when things were really difficult, situations that we thought had no answer, or no end, or no purpose.

And if we can look at those dark times and see that we are in a better place, and have true Hakoras Hatov for that, then we can reaffirm to ourselves that the “Geula awaited” is just as real.

Earthquakes, bridges collapsing, eclipses, what a week!

The precision, the detail, and the Hashgacha Pratis with which Hashem runs our world has been shown to us in huge, cosmic ways.

We all heard about the beautiful Gemara in which we are told that earthquakes occur when two tears “fall from Hashem’s eyes” into the oceans, tears of a Father seeing his children going through painful times.

We all heard what the Chofetz Chaim said about an eclipse representing the gevura of Hashem; the loud and clear statement that what many people might see as having their own power, even the sun and the moon are all actually powerless, they only get their abilities from Hashem.

Bitachon is the understanding that everything Hashem does is for a reason, and that He loves us more than we can ever fathom.

Reinforcing this when things are good (like this morning when the pan of chicken that I was preparing for supper fell on the floor right-side-up, and the first thing I said ‘Hashem loves me’) **,

When a baby is born, when a shidduch is finalized, when I receive money that I was waiting for, when the delivery arrives, when I realize that the washing machine is not broken but just needed a break….

If we talk about Hashem running the world, and Hashem loving me, and everything being for my best even if it hurts….

Then when it really hurts, I can pull out that belief.

But if I don’t own that belief with every fiber of my being, then it’s hard to believe that Geula can really come.

Let’s talk about Geula in great times, in happy times, in the Geulos that we have all lived through, personally and nationally.

And with that belief and confidence, we will embrace the Geula around the corner.

Wishing you a beautiful and transformational Pesach.

 

** for those of you that don’t have teenagers, that’s called a T4- stands for “therefore”, meaning, without saying it straight out, I’m modestly (but not) throwing in how geshikt I am by preparing a yummy fresh supper 2 weeks before Pesach, and early in the morning no less.