BShalach Excerpts

בשלח

Shabbat Shalom vTu BShvat Sameach

It is the new year of the trees and I for one am not eating fruit or vegetables this Shabbis...

The Jews complained and showed they are scared of Paroh, now chasing them, and Moshe tells them that they should stand strong and see H’s salvation. (14:14) ‘H’ will fight for you and you shall remain silent.’ The problem is that you all talk. All you do is complain. We bring some amazing dried fruits and all there is, complaining. Oh...Why can't I get a non-withered apricot?...

You don't see the post Tu Bshvat salvation. Why? Because you show you are scared, but you keep on talking. H' doesn't help you, becuae you are never quiet. You see, Frank is still talking in the back there. That is the never to be salvationed area of the shul.

How can we win 'hide and go seek' if we do not allow H' in?

In Eileema there is food and water. But then, again, there is a spot with not much. (16:1-3) In Sin it would appear that there is less, and the people complain again, 'It would have been better to die by H's hand in Egypt, as we sat by the pot of meat...rather than to kill the nation by famine.'

A few days without food and they lose their trust in H'. One hour without ripe fruit, and unsalted nuts, and you are all going crazy. 

Is it all about being full? Is it about a shmorg? We can see that this Tu BShvat Seder is not that going to be satisfying anybody's palate. Kiddish is not going to be good times for anybody. it kind of makes you want to sneak in a regular tomato that has not been dried by the sun...

Dried fruits and unsalted nuts. Everybody likes salted almonds. They didn't even think to cover the unsalted nuts with chocolate. And even then, the salt would make it better.

Yes we are starving. Nobody wants to eat any of this food. The complaints are point-full. However, why do we quickly forget H's salvation? We are already losing trust here.

The reason: Because you are not silent for the sermon. 

Look, the water of Marah was sweetened by trees. Can't the Jews already trust H'? Yes, there are problems. There is no way of salting the cashews...We are going to be giving out grape juice, along with the unsalted nuts and dried fruits. At least there is something...

It turns into a question of whether or not we trust H.' It is not the Manna (the food from heaven) that we are trusting in, but if we trust that it will be there. And thus H' tests us by seeing if we follow His teachings (16:4-5) that we take the day's portion on its day and two on the sixth day.

Many have asked the question: Will the trees once again bear normal fruit?...That I cannot tell you. The sisterhood did not bring us hope this Shabbat. I am scared....

Every Shabbat, Chaim has been taking more than two portions of the choolant. And now we see that there is none.

After Moshe and Ahron let the people know that H' has heard their complaint, and that now it will be clear that H' brought them out of Egypt, they let the people know (14:8) that 'it is not about us that you are complaining, but against H.''

Complaints are against H'. They are not requests. You are not complaining about the sisterhood. You are complaining about the fruit of the tree and the nuts of the land. They are against H,' because you never listen to the answer. You are not silent...

The complaints today are not against H,' but against a very long and painful Tu BShvat seder. 

Tu BShvat reading of the Hagada was very long. Karen and Michael must go to a tudor. That would be our salvation.

We have questions for our seder:

Bar Mitzvah Boy coming up to do the reading was most awful. He is still talking in puberty voice. How long does puberty voice last?

The candies from the last week are not here. Can we throw dried fruit at him?

Why is it that on all other days, we are allowed to eat peanuts with salt?

If the Pesach seder is so long, why does the sisterhood force us into having another seder?...

It is great to have the Zessel family this week. Thank you for sponsoring the Tu BShvat Kiddish, in honor of your parents' Yahrzeit.