Day 5 - Reunions (Part III)
Yesterday, I spoke about reunions and seeing friends and family after a long time. I had the opportunity to reconnect with people whom I hadn't seen or really talked to in years (in some cases, 20)! As I reconnected with long-lost friends and acquaintances, I thought back to when I told some friends of mine that I was going to become a rabbi. Some of them said, "Make me a promise that you'll never change." I did not fully understand their request until much later. They were scared that they would lose the part of me that they love the most (probably the fun and silly, and sarcastic side). The truth is, I could never make them that promise because I believe our mission is to change. At the same time, no matter how much we change, we still have parts of ourselves that we must cherish and bring with us.
Rabbi Israel Salanter, the founder of the Modern Musar or Jewish Ethical movement, told the following story:
When I was a young man, I wanted to change the world. But I found it was difficult to change the world, so I tried to change my country. When I found I couldn’t change my country, I began to focus on my town. However, I discovered that I couldn’t change the town, and so as I grew older, I tried to change my family. Now, as an old man, I realize the only thing I can change is myself, but I’ve come to recognize that if long ago I had started with myself, then I could have made an impact on my family. And, my family and I could have made an impact on our town. And that, in turn, could have changed the country and we could all indeed have changed the world.
In order to change the world, we have to change ourselves. The changes we make in ourselves oftentimes enhances those timeless parts of ourselves.
Yesterday, you wrote about how you've grown in a positive way. Today, let's focus on the positive impact you have made on others in your life with the part of you that never changes.
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