10 Jun BEHALOTKHA: WHEN EVERYONE ELSE IS MAKING A SPLASH

Parashat Beha’alotecha
begins with the mitzvah of
kindling the menorah.
Each and every day,
Aharon was to clean the oil
lamps of the menorah in the
Mishkan and light the candles.
Rashi explains that this command is
directly connected to the final section of
the previous parashah, Parashat Naso,
which tells of the special gifts and
sacrifices brought by the nesi’im, the
leaders of the tribes of Israel. In honor of
the inauguration of the Mishkan, the
leader of each tribe brought an elaborate
series of sacrifices – except one: the tribe
of Levi. Aharon, the leader of tribe, did
not participate in this special celebration.
And he felt left out. He felt upset.
Hashem therefore told Moshe to remind
Aharon of the great privilege he had to
light the menorah each day. He was
telling Aharon, in Rashi’s words, “Yours
is greater than theirs.”

Aharon was assured that he should not be
disturbed by not taking part in the special
offerings of the nesi’im, because he had
the privilege of kindling the menorah
each day.
We have all experienced this feeling
which Aharon had – and more than once.
We have all had times when it seems as
though everyone is “making a splash,”
doing something big and monumental,
except us.
We look around and see one person
making a fancy wedding, another one
buying a beautiful house, somebody else
hosting a lavish bake sale in his gigantic
home, and someone donating a Sefer
Torah and hosting a huge celebration.
We look around at all these people and
think, “What about me????”
“I’m just struggling to get by, barely
covering my bills, just trying to do my
thing, preparing dinner, getting the kids
set for school, and then waking up in the

morning and doing the same.”
Hashem’s response to Aharon
is the response we need to
give to ourselves whenever
we feel “left out,” when we
feel small and
unaccomplished: “Yours is
greater than theirs.”
Your simple, day-to-day
struggle is greater than the
splash and the excitement!!!
This is not to say, Heaven
forbid, that there’s anything
wrong with making large,
festive semahot or making
generous donations – just as there was
nothing at all wrong with the nesi’im’s
lavish gifts and offerings. These are all
very beautiful and precious.
But we need to remember that the simple,
day-to-day struggle is something great.
Sitting down and working out problems
and difficulties, figuring out how to
squeeze by with a limited budget – this is

something great.
Let us not allow the “splash” made by the
people around us to define for us what
success and failure are. Working within
one’s circumstances and making the most
of every situation is the greatest form of
success.
If we do that, then indeed, we are great
and special, and we have no reason to
feel left out.