It's erev Shabbos. Typical Jewish home.. everyone has lots to do. I think it is pretty common for each of the children to have their own responsibilities Children don't always do everything they are supposed to do. As parents we give them "consequences." This family has a simple rule: If you don't take care of your responsibilities on erev Shabbos, then you don't get dessert Friday night. Perfectly appropriate and effective.
One week, Mommy tells the children: You have all been so good the last few months, I want you to have some time on Friday to do what you want. You don't have to do your jobs this week and I'll be sure there is a special dessert. Wow! Everyone runs off to do whatever they like best with all this extra free time. Except one... little Shprintze, who is crying! "But Mommy! I want dessert! How will I have dessert if I don't set the table?!" Mommy is a little surprised and tries to talk to Shprintze, but Shprintze is so caught up in her worries that she isn't really listening. Mommy has an idea, "Listen Shprintze, my little dear, you can help mommy make dessert." Shprintze gleefully does everything her mommy asks to help with dessert.
This week's parasha (the first one, the one that is still fun) tells us (Vayikra 25:18/19): And you will do all My statutes and My laws you will keep and perform them. You will live in the land securely. The land will yield its produce and you will eat to satiation. You will live securely on it (the land).
So cool. What a blessing. But then (Vayikra 25:20/21), "If you say, 'What will we eat in the seventh/shmita year when we haven't planted and we haven't gathered in our crops?' (HaShem answers) Then I will command My blessing for you in the sixth year, and it (the land) will produce three years worth of crops."
Huh? Didn't HaShem just guarantee our food and tranquility? Didn't He just give us a year off to do what we really love without distraction? The S'purna comments: You are uncertain and don't have faith that a small amount will be of such great quality that you will be completely satiated? Ok... I'll give you a large quantity to satisfy your eyes. That is, there won't be any more real nourishment, it will just look bigger to satisfy the yearning of your eyes. Note, of course, taking care of a triple size crop in one year will be a lot of work! You'll have to hire more people, rent/buy/build warehouses. The food will need processing, preservation, storage, and then distribution. Sounds like a lot of work.
Let's unpack this. There is obviously no direct cause ==> effect relationship between dessert getting in front of Shprintze on Fiday night and her setting the table erev Shabbos. It is just that her mother made them dependent one on the other. Why did Mommy let Shprintze help with dessert on erev Shabbos? First, Shprintze will see that her siblings get the same dessert that she gets even though they did nothing to help on erev Shabbos. Over time, when Shprintze is confronted time and again by the fact that her extra efforts do not produce any extra benefits, she is going to get the message. Moreover, Mommy picked a way for her and Shprintze to spend more time together. Shprintze will, over time, learn that her mother is trustworthy and loves her.
Obviously there is appropriate and required hishtadlus. A person has to be real and live a normal life, which itself is doing the Will of HaShem. During my last several years in the workforce, though, I worked neither on Purim nor on Tisha b'Av. No matter what was going on at work, no matter what deadlines were approaching. The Shulchan Aruch says that someone who works on those days will see no bracha from that effort. If I had to work, I certainly wasn't going to work for no compensation!
Anyway, I am sure the message of the mashal is clear. Good thing we are all mature, reasonable adults and not at all like little Shprintze.
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