QUALITY OF LIFE; OUR CHOICE
In this week’s Parsha, Beshalach, the Torah portrays the value of one moment of life. HaShem has taken His people from Egypt and has punished the Egyptians with the Ten Plagues. These Plagues were the greatest demonstration of HaShem’s continuing maintenance and involvement in His world. However, He was not finished, there was still more to accomplish.
HaShem tells Moshe “I will harden Pharaoh’s heart and he will run after you and I will become glorified through Pharaoh and Egypt will know that I am HaShem.” The stated purpose of having Pharaoh follow us into the Red Sea was two-fold. The first was to make HaShem glorified and the second was that the Egyptians should know that HaShem is the Almighty.
As the story unfolds we find the Egyptians following our people into the Sea, evidently, they still did not acknowledge HaShem’s Omnipotence as the guiding force of our people. Only moments before they die under the crashing waters do the Egyptian officers proclaim “HaShem is the One Who fought for His people against us!”
Behold! The second purpose for which HaShem brought about the splitting of the Red Sea was for the Egyptians to acknowledge HaShem in their last breath! The last breath of those evil folks gave purpose to this world historic changing event.
The notion of the infinite value every breath of life carries, was brought home to me this week when I visited a unique individual, Reb Avraham Dovid Weisz shlit’a. Reb Av-raham Dovid has been living with ALS for 15 years. Although this neurodegenerative disease took away all control of his body he nevertheless has control of the movement and focus of his eyes. In spite of the disease Reb Avraham Dovid remains as sharp and aware as he was before the disease. Naturally, he is unable to speak as he is not even able to breathe (he lives on a respirator). However, by use of a transparent sheet with the Alef Beis printed on it, his family and chavrusas are able to understand what he wishes to say. His mind is completely enveloped in his Torah study and prayer. After davening his morning Shacharis he begins his studies with his eight chavrusas from 8:00 in the morning through 10:00 in the evening. He has already finished learning the entire Shas in this condition. He will be finishing the works of the Ohr Hachaim Hakadosh and plans to make a siyum at the grave of the author in Yerushalayim later this year, with the help of HaShem.
He is an extremely happy person who loves his family and participates in their lives as any father and grandfather would. When meeting him I asked him to please give me a bracha to which he responded most generously. For the subsequent five minutes he communicated with his son using that transparent sheet everything he wished to say to me.
There are few words that can adequately convey the inspiration generated by meeting a person who does not participate in the material world whatsoever and is nevertheless so connected to his surroundings, to his studies and to His Maker. He is filled with gratitude and joy which knows no bounds for being able to serve his Maker and continue living.
Reb Avraham Dovid provides a profound lesson that life is worth living even when one’s health is less than perfect. As Western culture defines the worthiness of life as dependent upon the quality of life which is dependent upon good health, watching Reb Avraham Dovid is a living testimony that it has nothing at all to do with good health or quality of life. It is all about purposefulness. There is probably no person who lives with a higher quality of life than Reb Avraham Dovid and whose life is so worthy of living.
May HaShem’s kindness continue to give Reb Avraham Dovid good health and opportunities to serve Him for many happy years together with his beautiful family.
Have a wonderful Shabbos.
Paysach Diskind