This past New Year’s morning, as most of the world was still waking up from their late night celebrations, our UJCVP campus was bustling with activity.  Our incredible team of educators at the Sarfan Early Childhood Center showed up on their holiday to transform our main building into beautiful makeshift classrooms.  A water leak in our preschool devastated some of the classrooms, but thanks to Carmela, Naioki and our incredible team of educators, the children returned to fabulous classrooms this week.  And despite the space limitations, it's been remarkable to watch throughout the week how the challenges and obstacles are overcome through their creativity, dedication and a commitment to the highest standard.

The ability to overcome adversity is reflected in this week’s Torah reading.  As Joseph is reunited with his father Jacob, we read about the introduction that he makes between his father and Pharoah.  When asked how old he is, Jacob responds:  “I am one hundred and thirty years old, but know Pharaoh they’ve been challenging years.”

While some biblical commentators criticize Jacob for complaining about his hard life, the 19th century biblical commentator Rabbi Meir Wisser shares that Jacob is not complaining, but rather highlighting that even though he has had struggles in his life, he never let these obstacles prevent him from maximizing his potential.  According to this interpretation, we are not judged by the years we live in this world, but what we have done despite our challenges.

Life’s journey is treacherous, with ups and downs, curves and twists.  Problems and challenges in life are part of the game. No matter how much you plan your life, stuff will keep happening, challenges will cross your path.  In these moments we can complain about our misfortune or rise above it.  Think of your own life.  What obstacles have you faced and how did you overcome them?  Who motivated you to persevere?

Returning to the Torah’s texts, the next verse helps to define it for us.  Pharaoh asks Jacob to bless him and we’re told: “Jacob blesses Pharoah.”  Ultimately, it is people who rise above challenges that are blessings to us.  At our Sarfan Early Childhood Center, our educators have blessed us.

Shabbat Shalom,
Eric Maurer
Executive Director
emaurer@ujcvp.org