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This week, we will celebrate my aunt’s 20th birthday. It is a very special moment, for a very special child, since she has Down Syndrome. We all love her in the family. We made an international party through Zoom, with a beautiful video of wishes from all the brothers, sister, nephews and nieces.
My aunt is not always an easy person… Taking care of her requires a lot of strength from my grandfather, my grandmother and myself, since I live in their home when I am in Israel for my studies. We need a lot patience, perseverance, calm and other various techniques which are not easy to apply every day - all day long…
Where do we draw the strength to continue to take care of her?
In this week’s Parasha Bo, we read about the ninth and next to last plague that G-d inflicted upon the Egyptians – darkness. For three days, the Egyptians could not see anything. The next three days, darkness became so thick that they could not even move. The Jews though did not suffer from darkness. Not only were the Jewish areas not affected by darkness but when the Jews went to the Egyptians areas, they could see and move.
The Jews took the opportunity to go inside the houses of the Egyptians. They did not steal anything, they just searched and checked carefully to see where the jewelry and other precious items were stored. When they would later leave Egypt, they would go the Egyptians by command of G-d and ask them to lend them their various treasures. If some Egyptian pretended not to have anything to lend, the Jews would remind him of where exactly they we hidden. This “loan” was not enough to compensate for the years of slavery, but it was important in order to fulfill G-d promise to our forefather Abraham. His promise that while his descendant will be slaves in a foreign land, they would also leave with great treasures,
In other words, the Jews were commanded to loan expensive items from the Egyptians. G-d made a special miracle during the Plague of Darkness, in order for the Jews to be able to fulfill this commandment. Even though they were still slaves and were not yet redeemed, they had G-d’s help and all the capabilities to do what was needed.
This can encourage us in difficult situations. G-d is always with us. Even when it seems that the light at the end of the tunnel is far away, G-d opens a light inside the tunnel. And if there is a need, G-d will even do miracles for us to be able to do what is needed.
I feel this with my aunt. Do you?
Shabbat Shalom,
Hanna
