Is Your Fare, Fair?

or,

What Are You Expecting?

by Rabbi Mordechai Rhine

The Jews were ready to leave Mitzrayim. The plagues had taken their toll on the Mitzriyim, and the Jews in unison brought the Korban Pesach with great anticipation. They knew that after this mitzvah the call would come summoning them from their homes for the long awaited Exodus.

Interestingly, there were specific directives given as to how they should eat the Korban. “Your belts shall be tied ready for travel; your walking shoes must already be on your feet; your walking sticks shall be in your hands.” We can readily understand why their belts should be tied for travel and their shoes should be on. They wore flowing robes which needed to be tied down; they often went barefoot. Hashem wanted them to eat the Korban in a way that showed that they were truly ready for travel. But why is there a directive for every Jew to have a walking stick in hand. Isn’t it true that Hashem would flatten their travel route miraculously as He led them with a Cloud of Glory. They would not be climbing mountains; they would not be inching their way through valleys. Why then does each person need to have a walking stick in hand?

I would like to suggest that the purpose of the walking stick is so that they should expect – and be ready for- a difficult journey. They should anticipate the ups and downs of the terrain as they would forge forward towards the Promised Land. This way when the walking sticks would not be needed they would recognize the contrast from that which they expected, and they would appreciate what Hashem would do for them by flattening the land. Because much of the way that we experience life is the result of our expectations.

Take a Chassan and Kallah for example. Seeing the joy of the newlywed couple people may wish them a beautiful blessing, “May all your days together be as wonderful as these days of Sheva Brachos.” Certainly the people who say this kindly statement mean no harm. But if the Chassan were to misunderstand and think that he has the right to expect a four course meal for dinner each night, “just as wonderful as these days of Sheva Brachos,” he may be in for a big surprise.

When I was in yeshiva in Passaic I once heard an Iranian student describe his admission interview into the yeshiva. The Rosh Yeshiva concluded the testing process by saying, “Moshe, you have passed. But we have no beds available in the dormitory. As soon as a bed is available we will be glad to welcome you to the yeshiva.”

The young man responded incredulously, “Who needs a bed?! When I was smuggled out of Iran, my father’s last words to me were, ‘In America you will be able to be Jewish’. He didn’t say anything about a bed. I can sleep on the floor. Just let me into the yeshiva…”

Much of the joy of life is based on what our expectations were. Perhaps, then, they did not all need walking sticks because they would not in fact need to navigate difficult terrain. The walking sticks might not have been for them to use on the journey. Instead they might well have been simply to create a baseline of expectation. This way when they experienced the blessing of a flattened route they would appreciate it.

One of the great attitudes that brings to happiness is to avoid locking in to great expectations of how we will be catered to in life. A person should be prepared to live with less than ideal accommodations. Lucky is the person who is prepared with a “walking stick” recognizing that the journey might require some endurance and acceptance on our part. This way, when the blessing is bestowed upon us, we can appreciate it all the more, as we compare it to “sleeping on the floor,” which could well have been our fare.

© 2015 by TEACH613™