A Thought on Parshas Vayatzae

"...Va'yaetzae Yakov ... va'yelech..." (28:10) '...and away went Yakov ... and he traveled..." I am sitting shiva for my father R' Gershon ben Nachman z'l. Although I had considered that al pi halacha I might be able to write out my Thought on the Parsha blog this week, in that I might have a halachic status of a melamed Torah, for which there are heterim to continue teaching despiteshiva (plus I had formulated this week's Thought prior to my father's petira), I discussed the matter with HaRav Elazar Muskin shlit'a, who is my parent's Rav, and he suggested that I not do the Parsha Thought this week. Instead, I am consigning this avodas hakodesh to my daughter Penina, who is often my chavrusa and at times my morah. We worked on the words together, the idea is ours, the source is ibn Shu'aib, and the effort should be a zechus for the neshama of my dear late father. *** Our Parsha this week describes the frightening exile of Yaakov Avinu. The miserable years spent living in the home of Lavan forced Yaakov into an environment that completely contradicted all that he’d gleaned from life as a child of Yitzchak and Rivka, and had learned during his time in the Yeshiva of Shem V’Ever. The dangers, both physical and spiritual, were truly life threatening. From his conniving hosts, to living on the run, and even his fight with an angel, Yaakov never seemed to have a moment’s respite. All of his challenges and perils foretold the threats that we, his descendants, have faced during 2000 years of galus. This is the classic example of how "maasei Avos" - the events affecting the life of our father Yakov - symbolize the future lives of our nation during exile. For over 2 centuries we have barely survived inhumane and dangerous nations. Whether they tried to destroy us physically or spiritually, our host cultures have been consistent in their brutal attempts at hastening our downfall. This is the Va'yatezae Yakov, the exile that Yaakov went in to. Yet, the maasei avos siman le'banim has a second dimension: ibn Shu'aib teaches us that the positive outcome of Yakov's travails is that we can expect redemption from this dark exile. Learning from our ancestor Yaakov Avinu, we can look at challenging times on the journey of life as a reassurance that we are yet one step closer to being in our Home! The pains of exile will turn into joy, into a world with no weapons, no illness and a total awareness of HaShem Echad A "happy ending" awaits us! Our avoda is to remember this as we experience the bumps on the road. The twists and turns are perfectly placed by HaShem to guide us and prepare us for our redemption! *** The preceding approach to taking perspective on galus and its yisurim - exile and suffering - has meaning for me in my retrospective of my father's life and of the ordeal which he endured these past 33 months. One can dwell on the agony of the moment, and on the reality, or one can look ahead at the bigger picture. I know that my father z'l did not complain as his sight faded, and he could no longer read; as his digestion stopped and he could no longer eat; as his bones weakened and he could no longer walk; as his voice ended and he could no longer talk........ He saw the bigger picture, he knew where he was headed - where we all are headed - and as ibn Shu'aib writes, the descendants of Yakov learn to accept all things b'sever panim yafos. May his memory continue to inspire and bless us. Good Shabbos. D Fox Rabbeinu Yehoshua ibn Shu'aib was a 14th century Spanish rishon. More pirushim presented by Rabbi Dr. Dovid Fox athttp://thoughtonparsha.blogspot.com/