When I Grow Up…
What are you going to be when you grow up? When are you going to grow up? Are you fully grown up?
The Torah tells us that Moses spent the last few weeks of his life communicating with the generation of Jews that would be entering into the land of Israel. He described to them in great detail all that had happened from when they left Egypt through their 40 year stay in the desert. He also ackwoleged that they were better prepared to enter into the land then their parents generation. In a sense they were more grown up.
Grwing up is a process. And as we get older and wiser we realize that there are many areqas of our life that we could use some growing up.
This is the Torah’s view on life, that we should be in a constant state of growth.
We are all at various stages of life and the questions about growing up may seem a bit out of place. However, if we look deeper we can see layers of growing up. You may be grown in some areas and not grown up in other areas.
There are many parts to the human being; there is the physical, the emotions, the intellect, will power and pleasure.
Each area has many parts and we need to grop up in each of them.
If we are open and allow ourselves to a critical look at where we are we will discover thgose parts that need help.
This is one of the reasons why we read the Torah again each year. On the surface it would seem that we should read something else, afterall we have been reading the same book for close to 3500 years, that’s a long time.
But the book is only the same if you stay the same. If you grow each year then it is a new Torah. There is a new dimension that of your life that you are working on and developing and growing in and the Torah has something to say about it and help you grow in that area. The reason you did not see it last time you read it was because you were unaware of that part of your self.
As a people we have grown more then 3500 times we have learned much about ourselves as a people and how we interact with the world. Maybe on an individual basis we maybe at level one but the Torah knowledge available today is on level 3500+, and it is all available to each and everyone of us regardless of what level we are currently on.
The amazing thing is that because we have gone through these steps of growing up as a people, when ever anyone wants to begin growing they can speed through the process on the wings of the many generations that came before. We are truly in spiritual digital age.
So what area of your life is still under developed, your emotional side (if you are a masquline), your intellect (if you are feminine), and the other parts of who we are.
Every day is a day for growing up in some small area of life. hwne you have growing to do you then you are still young and fresh. When you are all grown up, well I don’t need to describe what that looks like.
So lets celebrate the fact that we are not yet fully grown up and continue to work on growing up in the areas that we need to.
Don’t be afraid to acknowlegdge your need to grow up, if you are a fraid that is a big sign that you have plenty of growing up to do.
I have found that although we grow up in many areas we still have many areas that we could use some growing up.