Flying High

B"H

Imagine the scene. Cars are filling the New York city highway in the
mid-afternoon traffic, bumper to bumper. Every 30 sec.'s or so, the
car ahead moves a yard, and then halts suddenly. Frustration abounds.
Suddenly, to the shock of all, a plane, flying at rocket speed, shoots
high into the sky above them, lost into the horizon. All of a sudden,
another plane is seen flying above them! But this plane begins to
totter as it flies, losing speed slowly, drifting up and down. The
reason for this failing lies in the plane's lack of a left wing. Oddly
enough, from the drivers' viewpoint, it looks as if the drifting
plane desires to join the cars on the highway!....

Don't worry, don't worry. This event never really happened. And if it
did, I probably would've heard of it here in NYC. This scene, rather,
is an analogy of something all to real, the situation of our People
today in this world. The nations of the world, the rest of society,
are the cars going on their usual routines in this world-making ends
meat and making it through life one step at a time. Then there are the
Jewish People.
At our head is a soaring plane, our leader who sets out the path for
the way in which we and the world are meant to live, seeing much
higher than our limited eyes can see. This was the Lubavitcher Rebbe,
who for over 40 yrs. taught us to look deeper than what our physical
eyes perceive, higher than our physical desires and want for immediate
gratification, further than our personal lives and wants. To utilize
our REAL selves more, our G-dly souls, to improve ourselves and help
others, tilling the "garden" of G-d, this physical world we live in.
For almost 2,000 yrs. though, we have been in 'galus'-exile, missing a
wing. We are the plane which totters up and down, struggling to stay
above. Working to do what's right, being a 'light unto the nations.'
Thrown around the world from land to land, under every type of culture
and attraction possible, yet all the while keeping our moral standards
strong, our dear Torah Commandments close at heart, untouched by our
conditions. But exile is exile, California is California, and it's
hard to fly without a 'wing,' living in exile without a revelation of
G-dliness. So we begin to fall a bit, trying to be like the rest of
the cars on the highway going along. But if we would only realize that
we aren't cars, but planes! If we would put on our missing wing,
utilize our divine souls, our deeper selves, than we would shoot high
above the cars, through the sky, and all the drivers with mouths open
would marvel at the grace of the plane, realizing that they could go
higher as well.
The Rebbe showed us the example. We the Jewish People were put into
this world to fly; to live higher, deeper lives, guided by G-d and His
Torah. We can, through wrapping Tefillin or lighting Shabbat candles,
giving charity or helping a fellow in need, help our people fly and
set an example to the world. To be the plane we are meant to be. To
soar above.
Let's do it!
Thanks for flying Jewish United,

Shabbat Shalom

-Daniel