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Today, I gave a class to the second grade in elementary school, while my teacher and friends watched on. On Tuesday in Israel, we started to pray for the rain, so that was the topic on my lesson. During the class, the pupils made sort of a rain orchestra, by holding a paper in one hand and hitting it with the other hand, first with one finger, then with 2 fingers etc. Try it at home, it really sounds like rain! The girls had a great time, and I think that, thank G-d, they understood what I taught them.
My teacher and friends had good comments. But, as expected and natural, my teacher had some remarks to give. There are certain things you can learn only through experience. I could already notice some of these things that need improving while giving my class, and I did not like it at all. I like to do things perfectly from the beginning. Why do I have to go through the whole process of learning and becoming better? Of course, I know that this is life but the way from the mind to the heart is very long… to manage to do this journey is one of the most important accomplishments in life.
The name of this week’s Parasha, Lech Lecha, means walking, advancing. Generally, all the topics of the Parasha fit with its title. Yet the Parasha tells us various things which were not positive for Abraham, its main character. There was hunger in the land of Canaan and he was forced to go to Egypt. In Egypt, his wife Sara’s beauty was noticed, and she was taken to the palace of Pharaoh. How do these two stories match the title of the Parasha: “advance”?
Each step down is part of the general journey upwards. Thanks to it, we can reach an even higher level. This can be compared to taking a step back in order to do a giant jump. We should not be sorry when a setback happens but use it as a push to become better. The setback IS part of the improvement.
I will try to remember that imperfect classes are part of the process of becoming a good teacher, and you should think of your own examples of imperfections that are part of the improvement process. In this way, we will be happy even with our setbacks, we will continue to advance and improve and bring Mashiach now!
Shabbat Shalom!
Hanna
