The event of the golden calf was a great setback for the Jewish people. When Moshe didn’t come back immediately after their count of forty days had elapsed, people started getting nervous. “We do not know what has happened to Moshe.” So a group of people decided to replace Moshe with a new and powerful spiritual force called the golden calf.

The Torah records different reactions to the golden calf. There was of course the group that made the golden calf. They felt that with the disappearance of Moshe there was a need for a new system. Some Jews joined them; others remained apart.

There was, however, one person who remained unaffected by the golden calf. Moshe’s loyal student, Yehoshua, remained waiting patiently at the foot of the mountain, blissfully unaware of the panic that had taken over the camp. To Yehoshua there was only one reality. Moshe would return as promised. He was not fazed by the delay or by the commotion in the camp. Yehoshua retained his vision of the future. Yehoshua was waiting.

This was not the only time that Yehoshua would display this powerful quality. When he was sent with the other spies to check out the Land of Israel, he was subjected to 40 days of hearing plans how to malign the Land. Through it all Yehoshua was silent. He waited. Only later did he voice his opinion; only later was his view borne out. Yehoshua knew how to maintain his view despite the challenge surrounding him. Yehoshua knew how to wait.

I once knew a teacher of sixth grade boys, who conducted her class with absolute dignity. The boys would come in after recess and she would stand at the front of the classroom with poise waiting for them to settle down. She had a clear vision of how the class was to be conducted and she earned the respect of her students by sharing that vision with them. Her words were a legend among the students. She would say firmly and with dignity, “Boys, I’m waiting.”

The skill of waiting is not just about patience. Correct waiting is about vision, and about perseverance to see one’s dreams become reality.

There was a woman in New York in the 1920s by the name of Rochel Gold. Mrs. Gold had a son that she wanted to enroll in yeshiva, so she did her research and chose the yeshiva that would be best for him. Then she set out to enroll her son in that yeshiva.

When she got to the office she encountered a very overwhelmed principal who told her that he simply could not take in another student. The classes were overcrowded, the building at its max. “Sorry,” he said, “Maybe you can come back when we have more room.”

Mrs. Gold politely left the office and sat down on the front stairs with her son. There they sat for the entire morning. At lunch time they ate their lunch on the stairs. Not until dismissal time did they leave to go home. The next day they again sat on the stairs. By this time people took note of them and asked her if everything was alright. Mrs. Gold answered, “Yes. Everything is fine. I’m just waiting.”

By the third day her answer “I’m waiting,” simply fell shallow. A teacher asked her, “What is it that you are waiting for?” Mrs. Gold answered, “They told me that right now they don’t have room for my son, but someday they might have room. So I’m just waiting until they have room for him in the yeshiva.”

Within minutes the principal had found a place for her son.

Waiting doesn’t mean passively watching the clock tick as we do nothing. Waiting is an active experience of anticipation. When waiting correctly we maintain a vision for the future, and take little steps towards the fulfillment of that vision.

Some people find it unnerving to deal with a “Yehoshua personality”. “Why don’t you give up already?” they might ask. But a student of Yehoshua doesn’t lose sight of the way things are supposed to be.

Over the past few years the popularity of rededication to Torah study and observance has grown enormously. In some communities new mikvaos and day schools have been built. The dream that every Jew should be knowledgeable in Torah is a goal that is gaining momentum. The accomplishments of the Jewish world are truly remarkable.

What strikes me as noteworthy, however, is that many of these motivated Jewish communities started just a few years ago with a few dreamers. Each community started with a few people who refused to stop yearning and waiting for a better tomorrow. They met to brainstorm and to study Torah, in groups of 2,3 or 5, until their numbers grew and success blossomed forth. Such achievements deserve celebration.

So whether you live in a vibrant Jewish community, or in a community that is starting out, remember the lesson of Yehoshua. Treasure your dreams and your vision for tomorrow. Waiting isn’t about passivity. Waiting is about the clarity that tomorrow will be brighter than today.