10 Jan PARASHAT SHEMOT: CONSISTENCY – THE GREATEST ACHIEVEMENT OF ALL

The Torah in Para-
shat Shemot tells of

Pharaoh’s cruel de-
cree that all male in-
fants born to Beneh

Yisrael should be put
to death immediately
at the time of birth. The two Israelite midwives

who delivered the nation’s babies heroically de-
fied Pharaoh’s decree, risking their lives in or-
der to protect the newborns.

The Torah identifies these two women by
the names “Shifra” and “Pu’a,” but our Sages
teach us that these were not their real names.
These women were actually Yocheved and
Miriam – Moshe Rabbenu’s mother and sister,

respectively – but they were referred to as “Shi-
fra” and“Pu’a” because of their expertise and

devoted work in caring for the newborn babies
under their charge. The name “Shifra” evolves
from the Hebrew verb “sh.f.r.,” which means
“enhance” or “beautify.” Yocheved earned this
name because she skillfully cared for the infants
and made them beautiful. And Miriam was
named “Pu’a” because of the playful sounds
she would make to calm and soothe the infants
(“Pu Pu, Ah Ah”).
One Rabbi noted the irony in the fact that

Yocheved and Miriam were given names com-
memorating their work as midwives. These

two women were national heroes. They flatly
ignored an explicit command of the powerful
Egyptian king in order to save countless lives,
putting their own lives at risk to this end. Isn’t
this heroism more worthy of commemoration
in their names than their handling of babies?
Why were they named specifically for their
work as midwives, and not for their heroism in
defying Pharaoh?
We learn from the names “Shifra” and
“Pu’a” that consistent, day-to-day devotion is a
greater achievement than the “big things” done
at special moments. Many, and perhaps even
all, people are capable of rising to the occasion
at certain times and achieve something great.
We oftentimes see community members who

excel when they are called upon to join a com-
mittee, spearhead a project, or meet a certain ur-
gent need that arose. This is certainly laudable,

but the true barometer of greatness is the consis-
tent handling of one’s ordinary day-to-day chal-
lenges and responsibilities. There is much to be

said for the big moments, and Yocheved and
Miriam are undoubtedly known as heroines for
their defiance of Pharaoh. But even greater than

isolated moments of heroism is lifelong consis-
tency, devotedly tending to one’s duties each

and every day, just as Shifra and Pu’a worked
devotedly caring for the newborn infants day in
and day out.
Many people do not regard parenting as a
glorious profession, but inlight of this lesson of
Shifra and Pu’a, good parenting is the greatest

of all achievements. A good parent works con-
sistently, every day, tending to the children’s

needs on an ongoing basis. Cooking and serv-
ing dinner, helping with homework, chauf-
feuring to appointments, birthday parties and

afterschool programs – each chore on its own
may not necessarily reflect greatness, but when

all this is done consistently, day after day, week

after week, and year after year, it reflects great-
ness like nothing else.

Certainly, we should aspire to rise to the oc-
casion when the big moments arise, when we

are called upon in extraordinary situations to

act “heroically” and do something excep-
tional. But the greatest achievement in life is

the day-to-day grind, being consistently good
in meeting the tasks that come our way on
a daily basis. This is how we become truly great people.