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Thought for the Day: After Simchas Torah is After the Chasuna

Every time I ask someone if they have heard of R' Meilach Biderman, they look at me like I am kidding... "Of course!" Ok, so once again I am the last to know; nu nu. I recently received a book of R' Meilach's thoughts on themes around the Jewish year.  The following really hit home with me.

Imagine you see a young man a couple of weeks after his chasuna. You see he is completely ignoring his new wife and going about his business like she doesn't exist. You ask him, "Excuse me... didn't you get married recently?" He gets a big smile on his face. "I did! The wedding was amazing! And the week of sheva brachas was amazing; each nicer and more inspiring than the last. Especially on the last day when all my friends and family got together to make something really special." So now you are really confused and ask, "So, what's doing with you and your wife?" Now it is his turn to look perplexed. He thinks you are kidding... "What do you mean? The parties are over, I have to get back to my life."

R' Meilach says that a person who just experienced the Yamim Nora'im and then Sukkos and finally the huge celebration on Simchas Torah; and now, even less than a week later, is just working on getting back to his life -- he is that chasan. Yikes.

I will just add my own thought on that. There is no "shmini atzeres" after Pesach. Why not? Because we immediately enter the period of s'firas ha'omer -- which the Ramban says is the chol ha'mo'ed of the Pesach/Shavous Yom Tov. Soon after Shavuos we have the three weeks and Tisha b'Av. After Tisha b'Av we are really starting to prepare for the Yamim Nora'im. (At the vasikin minyan we start learning hilchos Rosh HaShanah starting on the 10th of Av; at home, we start cooking for Yom Tov.) But after Sukkos we have a long winter ahead. We need the chizuk of Shmini Atzeres and Simchas Torah.

From R' Meilach's parable, though, we see that the long winter ahead is not "nebbich". No; the opposite! Just as the nuts and bolts of building a Torah family is the purpose of having a chasuna, so too, that "long winter ahead" -- living and breathing Torah, applying the mitzvos to each and every moment of our lives -- is the purpose of all the celebrating we did.

Let's get to it!

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