Table Talk

Va’era means, “and He appeared.” Hashem appeared at the burning bush and told Moses to go to Pharaoh and ask him to let Bnei Yisrael go and then to take them to their Promised Land. In this week’s parasha, Hashem appears to Moses and reveals himself through a series of plagues that he places upon the Egyptians.

Moses thinks that he is not fit for this task. Moses tells Hashem that he has “closed lips,” meaning he cannot speak very well and so he cannot be the leader of the People and talk to Pharaoh. The Midrash tells us that Moses burned his tongue when he was younger and so that is why he cannot speak very well. Hashem reassures Moses and says that you can still accomplish this important task and if you really need help, your brother Aaron will help you and speak to Pharaoh. Hashem refuses to accept the excuses of Moses, and by doing so, he helps Moses overcome any self-doubt.

Aaron and Moses then go to Pharaoh and command him to let the people go. Pharaoh keeps saying no, so Hashem has no choice but to start the Plagues. In this parasha Hashem sends to the Egyptians the plagues of blood, frogs, lice, wild animals, disease, boils, and hail.

The main task of the stories of the Torah is to teach us about life lessons. In this story, Moses gives lots of reasons why he cannot accomplish his task.

God responds that He will be with Moses the whole time, that his brother Aharon will help him, and with the right attitude, he can complete his important mission. Hashem’s response teaches us that despite our doubts, if we believe that Hashem will help us, and if we believe in ourselves and work together with others, then we can accomplish things in our own lives.

Last summer at my sleepaway camp, there was a very tall rock wall that I was too scared to climb because I thought that I would not be able to make it to the top and that I would get hurt. I thought that if I told my friends that I was scared that they would all laugh at me. However, when they saw my fear they actually comforted me and promised to be there for me. I decided to try to climb the wall, and then I was shocked when I made it all the way to the top! In this story I was scared like Moses in the Torah, but like his brother Aharon, my friends were there to help me through it! I learned from this that even if I think that I cannot accomplish something, I need to always try my best and know that my friends will be there to help me succeed if I need them.

I have a similar story. Also last summer at sleepaway camp, I was in the lake with my friends and we were challenged to climb a blow-up obstacle we called the “iceberg.” The iceberg is a slide that you climb up one way and slide down the other and it is shaped like an iceberg. We were all taking turns going on it. When it was my turn I started to climb and then said to my friends, “I want to go back down.” I was scared because I felt like I would not be able to keep pulling myself up. I was afraid that I would not be successful. My friends said, “Don't come down, you can do this!” My friends kept encouraging me to keep going so I did. I made it to the top and it was actually really fun. My friends' encouragement made me know that I was able to do it.

Sometimes we might feel that something is impossible or too difficult. It is human nature to feel this way. But this parasha ultimately teaches us that we accomplish whatever it is that we set our minds to, despite any limitations that we might have or any obstacles that are in our way!