We like to think that the times we are the least bothered by the afflictions of life, the times we are the most happy and full of vitality are the moments our true selves come out and we can radiate who we are. While this might be true, it is important to understand that these are not the moments that truly define us. It is the challenging situations in life in which we struggle and the way we grow from that that shows our true strength and quality.
If we look at Yaakovs life, we see that it is filled with hardships – his own family, Lavan, deceives him and makes him marry Leah, the sister of the woman he loves while finding himself in a situation of flight because his brother Eisav wants to kill him. He has to leave the holy beer Sheva for Haran (literally means „anger“), a dark place, deprived of spirituality. It is the way he overcame all these horrible things that defines him and makes him a spiritual giant, our forefather yaakov from whom we merit so many positive attributes til this day.
This should make us realize that avoiding challenges will never be an solution, rather we should see that these are the very opportunities for growth and proving our strength and competence – to let our real core shine. All of my teenage years I refused to address my shortcomings in my ways of treating people. It is very, very hard. Lately, I got to understand that this contradiction and struggle within myself is an opportunity to rise higher and get to know myself better. And even though this is a very emotional process which forces me to go into dark places, it is what will eventually build me as a human.
May we all have the strength to face our struggles and successfully overcome them. Shabbat shalom