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Dedicated for the speedy recovery of
Chaim Levi ben Chana Priva and Avraham Baruch ben Esie
Chodesh Tov! Today is the first day of the month of Nisan, the month of Pesach, the month of freedom.
Freedom? How can we speak about and celebrate freedom when we are confined in our houses due to the pandemic of Covid-19? What can give us the strength to stay strong and positive in such limiting conditions?
I saw a funny cartoon the other day about how our parents and grandparents were called to war in the most trying circumstances. We, on the other hand, are called to sit on our couches! This helps to keep things in proportion.
We can always learn from history. In the ghettos and the concentration camps, there were still people who stayed human, helped each other, shared a small piece of bread with someone else… “How is it possible for people to retain their humanity under such horrifying circumstances?" wondered Dr. Victor Frankel.
He was a psychiatrist who grew up in Vienna and during the Holocaust was sent along with many others from his community to the concentration camps. There, he witnessed something which amazed him: how people under such inhumane conditions, were able to keep their humanity.
It brought him to the following conclusion: “Everything you have in life can be taken from you except one thing, your freedom to choose how you will respond to the situation”. We don’t always choose the circumstances and many times we wish things would be different, but we can always choose how to react.
We are now facing a very challenging period with many limitations, but we have the freedom to choose what we will do with this situation: descend into anxiety and hopelessness, or react positively by increasing in good actions, by utilizing this time productively, by adding meaning to our lives, by strengthening our bonds with our family and friends. This will certainly add much good and light to the world, and help it overcome the challenge we are all facing.
May G-d grant a full and speedy recovery to all the sick. May G-d grant our world healing real soon, and especially the ultimate healing — the coming of Moshiach!