Dear Friends,
As we celebrate the Bar Mitzvah of our oldest grandson this weekend, I wanted to share a couple of thoughts.
Among my favorite song lyrics are the words from the song which I remember being sung by the Sandpipers (I must really be old, does anyone remember them?) called Guantanamera.
"A little brook on a mountain, the cooling spray of a fountain, arouse in me an emotion more than the vast boundless ocean. For there's a wealth beyond measure in little things that we treasure"
A Bar Mitzvah is not a little thing and yet this week in the Torah reading, we begin the book of Leviticus. There is a grammatical reason for the small "aleph" ( a Hebrew letter sounding like "a") which concludes the first word. The first word of the book ends with "aleph" and the second word begins with "aleph" so there is some reason to believe that the small "aleph" is to let the reader know that it may have been added by those who edited the text since one "aleph" might have been all that appeared in the original. If this is confusing, try looking up small "aleph" in VaYikra (Hebrew name for the book of Leviticus) online and good luck!
Many rabbis believe the small "aleph" is to remind us that however small our good deeds are, they all make a difference. The message I hope our grandson takes away is that all of us have unique contributions to make to our world. Although they may seem small, each time we do a mitzvah (good deed or commandment), there may be a huge impact. As we are taught in the MIshnah Sanhedrin, "if we save one life, we save an entire world." And...as we are taught in Pirkei Avot, the Teachings of the Sages, or Ethics of Our Fathers, one mitzvah (good deed/commandment) leads to another.
Finally, at some point I will share the following with him that I have adapted. The original version is "What Does a Father Say to His Son Before His First Game." I have edited it to say, "What Does a Grandfather Say to His Grandson Before He Becomes a Bar Mitzvah?" I was given this as a child before my first little league baseball game. The former coach of the women's basketball team at the University of Tennessee, Pat Summitt used to share a version of this with her team. (See below)
Shabbat Shalom,
Rabbi Bruce Aft
A Grandpa Talks to a Grandson Before He Becomes a Bar Mitzvah
This is your Bar Mitzvah,my grandson. I hope you do well. I hope you do well for your sake, not mine. Because doing well is nice. It’s a good feeling. Like the whole world is yours. But, it passes, this feeling. And what lasts is what you’ve learned.
And what you learn about is life. That’s what becoming a Bar Mitzvah is all about. Life. The whole thing is played out at a service which supports us during the happiness of life, the miseries, the joys, the heartbreaks.
There’s no telling what’ll turn up. There’s no telling whether you will do everything well or whether you may miss a word or two.
There’s no telling how you’ll do. You might be a superstar or you might be a loving grandson who will always be a superstar to his Savta (Grandma) and his Grandpa Bruce. There’s just no telling. Too much depends on chance. On how clear the Torah looks...on how the lighting is, on how relaxed you are.
I’m not talking about the Bar Mitzvah. I’m talking about life. But, it’s life that the Bar Mitzvah is all about. Just as I said.
Because every experience is part of life. And life can be serious.
But, that’s what you do with serious things. You do your best. You take what comes. You take what comes And you run with it.
Winning and doing well is fun. Sure. But winning and doing well is not the point.
Wanting to win and do well is the point. Not giving up is the point. Never being satisfied with what you’ve done is the point. Never letting up is the point. Never letting anyone down is the point.
Pray to succeed. Sure. But remember: what counts is trying. And remember the little things you do can make a huge difference:-)
Your Savta and I love you!
Grandpa Bruce
Author Unknown from John Wooden’s “Wooden A Lifetime of Observations and Reflections On and Off the Court.” (with edits from a proud grandpa...the original can be found online under "what does a parent say to their child before their first game"
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