Feeling Grateful for Our “Shoes”

Insight of the Week

Every morning, we recite a series of berachot , thanking Hashem for some of the precious blessings that we have in our lives – such as the ability to open our eyes and see ( פוקח עורים ), to get dressed ( מלביש ערומים ), and to stand up straight ( זוקף כפופים ). One of these berachot is שעשה לי כל צרכי – thanking Hashem for “fulfilling all My needs.” This berachah, surprisingly, thanks Hashem for the gift of shoes. Long ago, people would recite this berachah right when they put on their shoes in the morning. Why is this the berachah over the gift of shoes? Why are shoes considered כל צרכי – all our needs? When we buy a pair of shoes, we ensure that they’re our exact size, so that they provide us with the comfort and support we need to go out and do what we need to do. In this berachah , we thank Hashem for providing us with precisely what we need to enable us to go out and do our job. Each of us has a particular role, a place within the Jewish People. Each and every one of us is a piece of this beautiful puzzle. And Hashem gives us the exact capabilities, resources and opportunities that we need to do our job. We each are given “shoes” that are just right for our “feet,” for getting us where we need to go in life. Understanding this can save us so much jealousy and so many hard feelings. Once we realize that we each have a specific role, that Hashem has given all of us the “shoes” tailor-made for our role, we will stop feeling uneasy about what other people have and what other people do. We will recognize that what they have and do has nothing to do with us, and we will feel grateful for our “shoes,” for the small but indispensable role that we play within the great story of Am Yisrael . Parashat Ahareh-Mot begins by briefly recounting the tragic mistake made by Nadav and Avihu, the two older sons of Aharon. On the first day when Aharon and his sons served as kohanim in the Mishkan , Nadav and Avihu went where they weren’t supposed to go – to the inner chamber of the Mishkan – and brought an offering that they were not supposed to bring. Hashem killed them for this infraction. In the beginning of our parashah , Hashem tells Moshe to reiterate to the kohanim that they must not repeat this mistake – they may not enter this inner chamber of the Mishkan . The kohen gadol is permitted to go there on Yom Kippur as part of the special atonement service on that day – but otherwise, this area is off-limits. Nadav and Avinu were not content with their role; they wanted to be like the kohen gadol , offering incense inside the holiest area of the Mikdash . Their intentions were sincere, but they made a mistake by not feeling content with their role. The Gemara in Masechet Shabbat tells the famous story of a gentile who approached Shammai and said that he would convert to Judaism if Shammai could teach him the entire Torah as he stood on one foot. Shammai sent him away. This same man came before Hillel, and Hillel said, “That which you dislike – do not do to your fellow. The rest is commentary – go and learn it.” One explanation of this story is that this gentile wanted to do everything. It’s not just that he wanted to learn the whole Torah instantly – he wanted everything for himself. He wanted the Torah to be about him. Hillel explained to him that the way the Torah works is that everybody fills his role, while respecting everybody else’s role. Once we accept this arrangement, then we should “go and learn it” – find our individual role, and focus on fulfilling it to the best of our ability. We are all plagued by jealousy. All of us, deep down, feel some degree of resentment when we see people who have what we don’t have. The way to combat these feelings is to recognize שעשה לי כל צרכי – that Hashem has given us just the right “shoes,” that we each have our place and our role. Once we embrace our unique place and our unique role, we will never feel troubled by what the people around us have.