The Great Race

Shalom, Hi There
Shabbat Candle Lighting Times for
Moscow, Russia
Friday, February 5th
Light Candles at 16:52
Shabbat, February 6th,
Shabbat Ends 18:11
Torah Portion: Mishpatim

Election season always fascinates me.
Right now, I see candidates in New Hampshire who are living, breathing, eating and sleeping the election. These people want to win the prize of high office, and there’s probably nothing else on their minds. It’s all about the race.
Putting aside – for now – their motives for seeking high office, I find the singular focus fascinating. Imagine a deep-seated goal commanding the driver’s seat of your day’s words and actions, from the moment you wake up until night time, when you settle into an objective-laced dream state.
Is your day driven by a singular vision? Do we measure our words, our behaviors, our choice of foods etc, by how they affect the day’s all-encompassing objective? Or do we flit from task to task, pursuing some halfheartedly and some enthusiastically, but without an over-arching drive to our lives.
Jewish spirituality teaches us about soul dynamics. It delves into the psycho-spiritual layers of the human personality to explore the deeper layers of what makes us tick, to understand our perceptions, feelings and responses.
At your soul’s core is your elemental G-dly identity, an intrinsic oneness with your Creator. Oneness is your soul bedrock. And oneness isn’t just describing unity between two parties, it’s describing a state of consciousness. It’s depicting a sublime level of soul awareness, where one experiences a singular commitment to life. At one’s most primal, sub-conscious level, one is consumed with the drive for a meaningful life, which in turn generates oneness with G-d and oneness with self.
So look at the model of candidates excitedly using their days – beginning to end – to further their respective goals.
And then imagine how our lives might change if we found that kind of commitment to making today matter, beginning to end.
We’re racing against ourselves. And each day, each hour, we can win our own ‘meaningful life primary’, by quieting life distractions and finding our best selves.
And the only voter you need to convince is you.

Shabbat Shalom!
Rabbi Yanky Klein

This email is In Loving memory of my dear father
R’ Yerachmiel Binyamin Halevi ben R, Menachem Klein OBM