I
was astounded upon doing the math, to realize that I spend nearly 20 full DAYS
a year driving to and from work.
I'm
in the car on average 2 1/2 hours a day, and multiplied by 180, that means I
spend about 450 hours in the car. Not only in the car, but quite often in
traffic, covering a distance that in Iowa would likely take me 20-30 minutes at
most. It's pretty much the only part of my job that I don't love, but how do I
make peace with this?
The
Piascezna Rebbe has a powerful piece in what is known as Aish Kodesh (he called
it Derashos Mishnos Ha'zaam) where he riffs off of the words:
אל תחלוק על המקום
Do
not argue with, or maybe, don't dispute God.
He
read these words to say don't argue on the place where you are. It's
particularly powerful as he said these words on a Shabbos, while in hiding from
the Nazis. He taught that wherever you are is a place where you are connected
to God.
So
what do I do while I'm tired and stressed, and sitting in bumper to bumper
traffic? On a simple level, I try to listen to shiurim, podcasts and music, but
that only a beginning. That's just the Litvak in me worrying about bitul zman
and bittul Torah.
Can
I really be at one with God in the ugly dreariness of the Lincoln Tunnel? Can I
be as connected to Him at that moment as I am while hiking in nature, spending
time with my family, or learning a piece of the Rebbe's Torah? Because if I'm
really to learn from the Rebbe, that is indeed what he taught. That the world
truly is filled with God's glory, and that if I'm not feeling it, it's not
because God is not there, but rather because I'm not opening myself up to him,
indeed to reality.
It's
a battle but I try and speak with him while driving and to feel his presence
even as a taxi is cutting me off to get a fare.
Both
meanings of the words אל תחלוק על המקום
are connected. If I can make peace with where I am, I am together with HaKadosh
Baruch Hu no matter what surrounds me.
One can also marvel at the ingenuity and creativity of human beings. And that Hashem gave us this creative ability.
ReplyDelete"On Dec. 22, 1937, 80 years ago today, the center tube of the Lincoln Tunnel opened to motor traffic, connecting midtown New York City with Weehawken, New Jersey. Funded by the the Public Works Administration (PWA), the tunnel was built beneath the Hudson River by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, putting thousands of people to work during the Great Depression. A terrific engineering feat, the tunnel eased commutes in the burgeoning metropolis. Named after Abraham Lincoln, the tunnel followed the completion of the Holland Tunnel, also under the Hudson, in 1927."
Construction on the Lincoln Tunnel began in March 1934, and crews worked from both sides of the Hudson River. The work of the sandhogs—as workers who dig tunnels are sometimes known—was dangerous and claustrophobic. To reach the construction sites beneath the river, crews had to pass through air locks that eased them in and out of the high pressure areas. Dynamite exploded, giant drills roared, and tram cars rattled as workers braced the tunnel’s excavation with concrete and hundreds of giant iron rings. The New Jersey and New York workers met beneath the river for the first time in August 1935."
https://www.worldbook.com/behind-the-headlines/Opening-the-Lincoln-Tunnel