(ראה אנוכי נותן לפניכם היום ברכה וקללה) ( דברים פרק י”א פסוק כ”ו)
‘See, I have placed before you a blessing and a curse’ (Deuteronomy Chapter 11 verse 26)
According to the simple understanding of the verse, Moshe Rabbeinu is laying out the consequences of the path they take. Keep the Torah and you’ll enjoy a wonderful existence. Neglect it and you’ll suffer.
The Dubno Maggid has his own interpretation. As usual, he brings a parable:
Scenario A:
A man was walking down the road, when he realised that he had dropped a valuable gold coin. On his way back, the man made a conscious effort to look out for it. Instead of finding one coin, he found two. The man started dancing. He couldn’t believe his good fortune. “Thank you Hashem” he cried, “If I hadn’t lost my coin I wouldn’t have gotten this windfall!”
Scenario B :
A man was walking down the road, when he realised that he had dropped a valuable gold coin. On his way back, the man made a conscious effort to look out for it. Instead of finding one coin, he found two. The man’s face fell. He couldn’t believe his bad luck. “Oh no” he cried, “If I hadn’t lost my coin, I would have had three coins now!”
Two people. Same circumstances. Different reactions.
Moshe was teaching us that Hashem arranges events in our lives, big and small. But their status is up to us to determine. Is a late bus a nuisance or an opportunity to read more or learn more Torah? Is a bad internet connection a lost hour of work or a great opportunity to clean up your cluttered desk, or take of any other small things or your ‘to do’ list?
Disaster or success? Loss or opportunity?
Our perspective is our choice. Let’s choose wisely.
(As heard from Rabbi Shimon Semp)
Growing with the Parshah 