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Chazal tell us that one of the things that we did not do in Mitzrayim is that we did not change our names. The shaila is about Moshe Rabenu. Is Moshe Rabenu a Jewish name or an Egyptian name? It's not clear. The Chizkuni says that it was Yochaved who named him Moshe, and not Basparo. She actually told Yochaved it was actually Yochaved who told Basparo the child's name. The Ibn Ezra says that Basparo gave Moshe an Egyptian name, which was Munius. And that the Hebrew version of Munius is Moshe. Alternatively, the Ibn Ezra says that Basparo knew how to speak Hebrew. So she gave Moshe a Jewish name. She gave him a Hebrew name. It's possible. Certainly, Ibn Ezra doesn't need my askama. The Yalkut Shimoni brings down ten names that we don't call Moshe Abeno. Ten names that were given to Moshe Abeno. His names were Yered, Avigdar, Chaver, Avisocho, Yekusiel, Avizan, Noah, Tuvia, Shmaya, Benevyatar, and Levi.
After Shavu Levi. The obvious question that we're going to deal with tonight is: Where did Moshe Abenu's name come from? Is it possible that Moshe Rabbeinu had an Egyptian name? And that despite the fact that Klali Yisrael did not change their names for some strange reason, Moshe Rabbeinu was able to keep potentially an Egyptian name, which is the Pashat B'Shat? It is the Pashu of Shot that Basparo, she said, came in Amaya Mishisiu. He was dragged in from the water. So if it was her that named him The simple explanation is that she was not somebody who knew Hebrew. So why in the world would Moshe Rabbeinu get to keep an Egyptian name, and why would we call him that for all time? There's a Raga Chaver Goyin. Raga Chaver Goyin was from the greatest geniuses of his generation. The ruchach ever go and ask say Kasha.
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If you look carefully at the pesukim Where did Moshe Rabbeinu's mother place the teva? She puts little Moshe Rabbeinu in the teva. And she puts it somewhere. Where does she put the teva? When you look at the targum, what does it say? On the side Not in the Yam Suf itself, on the banks of the river. Later. The Raguachaver Gon points out that Moshe Rabbeinu, when Bas Parod takes him in, is found in B'tochasuf. How did Moshe Rabbeinu go from being on the banks of the river to within the river itself? That's the Raguachaver Gon's kasha. Really, we know that the Yam Suf The Nile River It was an avodah zara for the Egyptians. They worshipped Yam Suf. So it's quite possible, says the Raga Chaver Gon, based on the Gemara in Pesachim twenty five a That even to save the child's life, it would have been inappropriate to use the vehicle of an avodah zara.
So it makes sense then that when Yochevit put Moshe Rabbeinu in the teva, she didn't put him b'tochasuf. She didn't put him in the Nile River. That would have been aser. She put him on the side of the Nile River. And if that's the case, that she put him on the side of the Nile River because she didn't want to use the avodah zara as a way of saving her son, how did it then come to pass that Moshe Rabenu ends up betochasuf, and why? Fascinatingly We also know that Chazal tell us the Medrash in Shmos Rabba tells us that on the day that Moshe Rabenu was taken into the house of Parah There was a bitul hgzera The gazette was nullified. In other words The xayra of Paro that all the males should be thrown into the Nile River was nullified on the day that Bas Paro pulled him from the middle of the Nile River and took him in.
What's the connection between the fact that Moshe Rabbeinu was pulled out of the river and now all of a sudden there's a bitalach zayra? So I want to share with you a very deep concept. This concept is relevant to every one of our lives. It's a concept that started perhaps in Mitzrayim, but remains relevant today. And it goes as follows: Why does a person go into galus? Why do we go into galus? It cannot be that the whole purpose of galus is to get out of galus. That doesn't make any sense. If you actually think about it If we were not in a state of exile And then Hakadosh Baruch Hu puts us into a state of exile. It can't be that the whole tachlis is to get out of exile, because if the whole purpose of going into exile is just to get out of exile, then what could we have done from the very beginning?
Just don't go into exile. Or another way of saying this is: let's say we're in Shamayim Our soul is in Shamayim. Connected deeply to Hakadosh Baruch Hu. What do people say? The purpose of going down into this world is to go where? Back up to Hashem. Then we could have just remained up with Hashem to begin with. Does that make sense? Or the same concept? Adam and Chava were originally one. Then Hakadosh Baruch Hu split them And He tells them, "Vahayu lebaser echad." Now go become one. I don't understand. Weren't they just one a minute ago? If Hakadosh Baruch Hu wanted Adam and Chava to stay as one Then he could have just left them as they were. It must be that it's greater Not to be one But to discover each other and become one. It must be that as much as the soul delights in the presence of Hakadosh Baruch Hu There's a greater light, there's a greater understanding of Hakadosh Baruch Hu that happens not up in Shamayim, but down here in this world.
It must be. That when a person goes into Gullus, there's something in Gullus that can be achieved that cannot be achieved in our original pre-Gullus state. There's a difference between. Listen carefully to this idea because it's a game changer. There's a difference between Geula and the state that you were in before Gullus. Before Gullus, there was a light that you did not yet understand. You must go into exile to discover the true nature of that light, and then you have geula when you've discovered the secret of exile. What's an example of this? Let's say you have a person lo alenu who's an addict. It's a terrible state for a person to be in. An addict cannot simply become somebody. That no longer drinks or no longer does drugs. That's not called becoming sober. That's called being a dry drunk. Just because you don't drink anymore doesn't mean you're sober. Just because you don't do drugs anymore doesn't mean you're sober.
To truly become somebody who's sober The alcoholic has to discover that within the pain of his alcoholism There's a state of spiritual yearning that must be satisfied. And that, without addressing the inner state of spiritual lack They will continue to drink. They will continue to destroy their lives. In other words, the alcoholic from all the people in the world An alcoholic is a human being writ large. An alcoholic is somebody whose desire for connection and spirituality is greater than anybody else's, and they drink in order to satisfy that desire. They have a god-sized hole in them. And until they fill that god-sized hole, they will continue to fill it with all the garbage in the world. And so, the point of an addict going to rehab is not simply to stop drinking. Why does an addict go to rehab? An addict goes to rehab, hopefully, if it's a good rehab.
To go to the depths of that person and to discover something about themselves that they've never discovered before. I have a chaver who's an alcoholic. He is one of the deepest people I've ever met in my entire life. I know that if I want to talk to somebody real I know that if I want to talk to somebody who's going to give it to me straight. If I want to speak to a connected person, I go to him. Because this is a person that, for him, his spirituality is not a hobby. For many of us, our spirituality can be a hobby. It's something like I check off my list: I did I dive in today. Did I learn today? That I do chassidim, we have that checklist of the Judaism. For him, his life can't be that way. If he doesn't have a deep spiritual connection, if he's not constantly focused on leading these spiritual principles in his life Integrity Making amends, taking an inventory of what he's done that day, checking in with his fears, his resentments, and his angers.
If he doesn't have a place where he goes to be connected to his higher power He'll fall apart. And so every day he's vigilant about making sure that he walks the steps. And he is without a doubt the most spiritual person I've ever met in my entire life. And I shouldn't say this out loud, which means I'm about to say it out loud. He's way more spiritual than half the rebbeim I've met in my life. And if I'm being honest, half is an exaggeration. He's way more spiritual than ninety nine percent of the rebbeim that I've met in my life. He is a man who's deeply connected. He discovered that in exile. He didn't discover that in a redemptive state. He discovered that in exile when he was in Gehenna and he was in Gehenna. When he was in Gehenna, he had no choice but to turn inwards and ask himself "What am I doing here? What is the spark?" That needs to be mined. What's the nugget that needs to be mined here? What's the value in this place?
Not just to take myself out of my state of addiction, but what was the very reason that I went down into this addiction to begin with? It was to discover who I truly am. Exile is a model for addiction. When Klal Yisrael went down into Mitzrayim, we did not do so because we were being punished. Hakadosh Baruch Hu already told Avram Avinu in the times of the Bris Bein Absarim. I'm going to send your children into exile. I'm going to do it. Why? Why would anyone do that? Imagine you're at your wedding. Very good. Thank you very much. It's a failure on the rest of you not to say 'I'm main' immediately. Shana bay. Baruch Hashem, you're finishing your shana bay on a high. You know how to say 'I'm main' to anything that's not even a bracha, but just sounds like something I should say 'I'm main' to.
Let's say at your wedding. And your husband looks at you very good. And your husband says to you about fifty percent. And your husband says to you Right before he says, "I reyat mikudeshes li, but dabazu k'das mo shavu yisrael. You stick out your finger And all of your friends and family are there. Best Hashem in the Marina del Rey. Best Shmorga in New York. That you say I made. I forgot I'm in Sam. And he says, "You want to go to exile with me?" Want to go to Gehenna with me? Nobody would ever say yes to that. You pull your finger back. Thank you. All your friends and family are there. The wedding's off. But Hakadosh Baruch Hu at the Bris Vayinabesarim, He says to Avram Avinu, 'Your children are going to go down into Mitzrayim into Gullus for four hundred years.' What does Avram Avinu say?
He says yes. Avram Avinu, the same Avram Avinu that when Hakadosh Baruch Hu told him. I am going to destroy Stone," he said."Maybe there is ten sadik, maybe there is one sadik. The same Avram Avinu that fights for everybody, the same Avram Avinu that goes to war in order to save Lot The same Avram Avinu when Hakadosh Baruch Hu says,'I am going to send your children down to Mitzrayim,' Avram goes, 'Yeah Huh. Where is the fight? How come Avram Avinu doesn't stand up and say no? Because Avram Avinu understands the secret of exile, the secret of gullus. There's something that must be achieved that can only be achieved in a state of gullus. It cannot be found when everything is going well. It's like if you ever want to know who you really are You'll find out when it all falls apart. It's the only real way to know who you are.
You know that thing when you lose a friend. Everybody here knows that thing. Like a good friend in high school. You were tied at the hip, and then one summer she came back and then you weren't anymore. About sixty percent of you, and the other forty percent are lying. So the sixty percent. How painful are those moments? I don't know what's going on with us. I feel very alone. You discover things about yourself. You discover a sense of inner connection that you could never have discovered as long as you were in that relationship. It's the absence of those relationships that turns you inwards. That says, so who are you? And then you discover who you truly are And not only afterwards can you appreciate it. Only afterwards do you go, when I was going through it, it was mamish gehenim. But now that I'm on the other end of it, I realized if I had never gone through it, I don't know who I'd be.
And so, if you ask the person in recovery, if you ask that addict in recovery, if you could go back and never take that first drink, would you? You know what they'll say. I wish I could take back all the pain that I caused But if I wouldn't have gone through that, I wouldn't be where I am today. I wouldn't be able to be the person that I am. Of course, none of us want to end up in that state. But the reason that Avraham Avinu didn't fight us going down to Galus Mitzrayim is because he understood that in order for Klal Yisrael to become the nation that it was destined to become, in order for Klal Yisrael to ultimately receive Kabbalah Satora, we needed to go to Galus because only in Galus can the galus itself teach you about the light that's hidden within it. And that secret light—the secret light of Gallus—was Bas Paro.
It comes from the deepest klipa itself, not just from Mitzrayim, but from Paro himself, the lowest possible person in the lowest possible land. Gave birth to the greatest possible light. That was Bas Paro. And so we know what Basparo was doing in the Yamsuf that day. What was she doing? What does the Gemara tell us? She was converting. She was going to mikvah. And why? I'm not lying to you. I promise. And why was she going to mikvah? Why there? Of all the places in Mitzrayim to go to mikvah, why does she go there? So listen, what the Ragu Chaver Goyin says. The Ragu Chaver Goyin, based on the Gemara in Sota 12b, says as follows. How do you destroy the shame of avodah zara? How do you stop something from being an avodah zara? The only way to stop it is when the bale avodah zara themselves treat it like a joke.
So what happened? Basparo, nobody was a greater oved avodah zara than Basparo. She's literally the daughter of Basparo. She says to herself, "This whole idolatry thing is an absolute joke." She said, "It's an absolute joke. I'm going to be Maguyer. I'm going to rid myself of all the filth of the Avodah Zara." Where does she Dafka go? She specifically goes to the greatest Avodah Zara of all of Mitzrayim. And she says, "I'm going to be Maguyer in the Yamsuf, and in that way, I'm going to nullify the entire decree." Once the Yamsuf stopped being a Yamsuf. Now all of a sudden, Paro's xzera. We're going to throw every single Jewish male boy into the Yamzuf, into the Nile River. Once Bas Paro goes in, it's no longer the same Yamzuf. It's no longer the same Avodah Zara. So Bas Paro, she nullifies the entire decree.
Paro says we're going to throw all the babies to the Avodah Zara. Bas Paro says it's not an Avodah Zara anymore. And that says the Ragu Chaver Gon is why Moshe Rabbeinu could now be found. B'toch Hayam. Up until now, where was Moshe Rabbeinu on the banks of the river? But the moment that Bas Paro walks in to the Yamsof, what happens? It ceases to be a Yamsof. It ceases to be an Avaydazar anymore. Now Moshe Rabbeinu can be found B'toch Hayam. It was the ultimate act of heroism. It was the ultimate act of defiance. But I want to take it a step further. Who's Paro? What's the darkness of Paro? So the darkness of Paro is that he says, "I don't recognize Hashem." Moshe Rabbeinu comes to him and says, "We're taking them out three days." Paro says, "I don't know this God that you're talking about."
He's the ultimate in defiance. The ultimate. Forget the fact that I disagree with your God. I don't even recognize your God. A fascinating thing: the chutzpa of Paro creates a different type of chutzpa. A chutzpa of kedusha. There's two chutzbas in this world. There's a chutzba of tumah, and then there's what's called an azas to kedusha. Have you heard of this phrase, azas to kedusha? It means a holy chutzba. What's the difference between an azas to the tumah and an azas to kedusha? What's the difference between an impure chutzba and a holy chutzba? And especially bear in mind that we know that in the times of Mashiach, there's going to be a lot of unholy chutzpa. The Gemara says that in the times of Mashiach, the tamidim are going to be so chutzpainted to their rabbayim, which means that in the times of Mashiach, there is going to be an obligation for us to rise up against that unholy tuma, unholy chutzba, with a very holy chutzba. What's the difference?
An unholy chutzpah sounds like this: I don't recognize my Maker. There is an unholy chutzpa in this world, and we're seeing it more and more today. I don't recognize God. This table is a table; it has no godliness to it. This world came from nowhere. It was, it is, it always will be, unless we destroy it. But this world, it doesn't come from anywhere. That's the unholy chutzpa that we see from Paro. I don't recognize your God. That's the unholy chutzpa of today. But within that chutzpah There's a light. When a kid stands up to a rebbe and says,"I don't like what you're teaching me, What's our response to that talmud? What's our response to that talmudah? There's a chutzpa there, right? But there is also another chutzpa. It's the chutzpah of a child that says, "I demand something more." I demand the truth. The unholy chutzpa of a kid who says to a rebbe in an inappropriate way, of a girl who walks into a bais yakov and says, 'I don't like this prayer that you are teaching me.' There is an unholy chutzpa there for sure, but there is a spark of a very holy chutzpa in there. What's the spark of the very holy chutzpa? Because the kids are demanding more.
The unholy chutzpa of Mitzrayim was Paro saying, "I don't believe in your God" But that very same unholy chutzpa it gave birth to Bas Paro, and of course it was Bas Paro, not a Ben, a Bas. It's very female this type of chutzpa. To be able to look at the chutzpa of Paro and to be able to say you don't recognize God, I do. It was the same chutzpa of Paro that gave birth to a daughter who would look at Paro and go, really You don't recognize God. I'm going to stand up against you, and I'm going to in the ultimate act of defiance. I'm going to believe in God. And not only am I going to believe in God, I'm going to choose to believe in that God in your face. Mamas, in the place that you think is the greatest of Odesara. That's what I'm going to nullify. Do you realize the strength and the heroism of Bas Paro?
We gloss over it, right? Who's the heroines in the story? It's Shifra, it's Pua, it's Miriam, it's Yochaved, right? Who's the real heroine of the story that we always ignore? It's Basparo. We all heard the pshat, the beautiful pshat from R' Simcha Bunim of Pshischa growing up That she couldn't reach. There are different pshatim of how she actually got to Moshe Rabbeinu. Some say that she sent her maidservants, but the other pshat says no, she reached. I, but her hand couldn't reach. She put out her hand and she said,"With a holy chutzba, Hashem will do the rest." And her hand stretched, and she pulled it in. It's a holy chutzba to be able to say,"I don't know how I'm going to achieve it, but Hashem's going to make it happen. It's a very holy chutzpah. When the Bachners started the organization Because lo alenu they couldn't have children But Mrs. Bachner said, "if we can't have children, we're going to start an organization to help other people have children." And now, over eight thousand babies have been born because of the Bachners.
They raise millions of dollars, millions of dollars, And give medical advice to all these women that Pasha unfortunately can't have children. They do everything they can. Over eight thousand children have been born. What type of chutzpah does it take to say, 'I know that the Rebbeinu Sholom says no. We're going to start an organization that says yes.' It's a beautiful chutzpah. That when a child gets cancer That high lifeline says, "we got you." Is a beautiful chutzpah. How much work it takes to get these organizations off the ground. I was thinking of the criticism that we have for people in our community. A lot of times I read these articles. I shouldn't read them. It's it's gross to read. Makes me a worse person. But I read these articles And all these criticisms of Jewish leaders. You know what? You go have your podcast. You go have your little thing where you sit and criticize Jewish leaders. In the meantime, I am going to watch these people change the face of Klal Yisrael Start yeshivas and beis yakovs and meisdes of chesed that take a tremendous amount of chutzpah. Who are you to decide? I am going to start a multi million dollar non for profit chesed organization. It's a Jewish chutzpah.
It's a Jewish chutzpah. It's a beautiful chutzpah. It's an azas to kedusha. That was Bas Paro. Where did she learn to be a mechutza from? She learned it from her father. Her father was the ultimate in chutzpa. Hakadosh Baruch Hu. I don't know you. I don't know that you exist. What does Bas Paro say? And I'm going to nullify your entire avodah zarah, and I'm going to stretch my hand even when nobody thinks I'm going to get there. It's up to Hashem. Hashem, I demand that you do it. This was who Bas Paro was. If you look at Moshe Rabbeinu's life Moshe Rabbeinu I know he was the son of Yochaveh. I know he was the brother of Miriam and the brother of Aaron and Cohen. But with a little bit of humility, I'd like to suggest that Moshe Rabbeinu was also the son of Basparim.
Because if you look at the very first three episodes of Moshe Rabbeinu's life All three of them are exceptionally chutzpided. No. The first episode that we read in Moshe Rabbeinu's life, vayigdal ayelad Vayigdal Moshe, vayetzay alechav. Moshe Rabbeinu leaves the palace in full defiance of Pharaoh. He says, "I'm not a Mitzri anymore. I'm a Jew. " What does he see? He sees an Egyptian hitting a Jew, and what does he do? He kills the Mitzri. He stands up for what's right. It's a holy chutzpah. The next day, he goes out. He sees a Jew hitting another Jew. Now he doesn't have to get involved. He doesn't have to stand up. But what does he do? He says, "What are you doing?" There's a holy chutzpah involved. Maybe they would have said, 'What do you mean? You grew up in the lap of luxury. You grew up in the palace of privilege. You're going to come now and tell us how we should behave?' There's a holy chutzpah that sometimes, in order to be a ma'aser abenu, you need to get up and say, 'I'm sorry. This is wrong.'
" We live in a world today where people don't want to say that because they're going to be canceled. Where Rabbanim can't say what they mean because if it gets out and it'll be on Spotify and it'll be on Apple Podcasts, and some lo yutsloch is going to go ahead and spend all their time combing the internet to find what somebody said that they don't like, and then they're going to put it out there for all to see. So nobody's allowed to say anymore. Stop hitting your brother. It takes a certain type of chutzpah to stand up and say this is what I believe in, and I'm not backing down. It takes chutzpah to draw a line in the sand and say Mila Hashem Eli. I'm on the side of Hashem who's with me. There's a chutzpah there. And then again in Midyan Where Moshe Rabbeinu sees the women of Midyan being attacked, and he stands up for them. There's a holy chutzba. Where did Moshe Rabbeinu learn this chutzba from? There's no doubt in my mind. He certainly learned it from Miriam. We know that Miriam had a tremendous chutzpah when she said to her father, 'You're worse than Parol,' because Parol only said, 'I'm going to kill the male babies,' but you're killing all the babies by having this decree that people should get divorced and nobody should have any more children.
There's no doubt that it was in Moshe Abenu's DNA. But I believe that he saw it in the house of Paro from Bas Paro. That Bas Paro taught him to be a mechutzef. That's what a Jew can learn in Gullis to stand up and say, 'I am a Jew, and I'm not backing down.' And I proudly wear my yarmulke, and I proudly wear my tshitsis. And even if you're going to knock the shrimel off my head, I'm not taking the shrimel off my head just because you decided to knock it off. Listen to this medrash. Medrashim Vayikar Rabba Hakadosh Baruch Hu says to bas paro You called Moshe Rabbeinu your son, even though he wasn't. I'll call you my daughter, even though you are the daughter of Paro. And that's how she got the name Basia. Because she stood up and she said 'I am on the side of Hashem.' So biologically, she was the daughter of Paro, but she was the spark of kedusha that was within Paro. That needed to be released, that needed to be found, in order for us to ultimately have a Moshe Rabbeinu and a Kabbalah Satora.
And listen to the Medrash. The Medrash says Hashem told Moshe Despite all of the names that you were given, remember how many names we listed before—ten names. Despite all the names that you were given I am going to call you by the name that Bas Parol gave you. Why? Kimein Amaya Mishisihu. Maybe it was an Egyptian name. Maybe it was an Egyptian name. But you know what? It was an Egyptian name that came from a girl who stuck her hand out, who went into the water to destroy the decree against Klali Yisrael, to nullify the Avodah Zara, and she pulled Moshe Rabbeinu out from the Tumah. Moshe Rabbeinu comes from the Avodah Zara. The Bittel of the Avodah Zara is exactly where Moshe Rabbeinu was born. So Moshe Rabbeinu was his name. Because a Jew has a holy chutzpah We stand up against that which is right and that which is wrong.
And it's no accident that Chazal tell us what was the day that Bas Paro went into the Yamsof? What was the day that she nullified the decree that she nullified the Avodah Zara? It was Shavuos. The day of Kabbalah Satora is the day that Bas Paro stood up to Paro himself. We're saying goodbye to the Shana Bet girls today. And I know that many of you are excited to see the Shana Bet girls go, so the room will be a little less crowded. And every year Shana Bet girls don't take it personally. Every year, the Shana Alf girls are like "It'll be good when they leave because it'll give space to other people to express themselves within the seminary." I understand; I've heard it all before. But I want to say something to the Shana Bet girls that are leaving, and I want to say something to the Shana Alf girls that are watching them leave.
To leave Eretz Yisrael. There's something in the world today. I don't like it. I don't even like talking about it. But there's this thing How do you stay strong in America? In Eretz Yisrael, everything was perfect, and the Toma Devorah bubble, everything was perfect. How do you stay strong when you go to America? It's such a weak question. It's a weak question. What do you mean? The whole point of coming to Eretz Yisrael, the whole point of coming to Yeshivat Yerushalayim, the whole point of coming to seminary It is to develop this holy chutzpa, a holy chutzpa that says it doesn't matter what the world thinks, it doesn't matter what the pundits or the social justice warriors on Twitter think, it doesn't matter what they say in the streets. There's a pride that we have as Yidden. We don't lose that pride because we went back to Los Angeles or New York or New Jersey. We don't lose that pride because we're in Chicago.
Other, we stand up to the world and we say we have a tradition that's thousands of years old that we're going to teach you. We don't go back to America and say Now I'm in Gullus. A yid goes into Gullus in order to truly discover themselves. That's what we go into Gullus for. So when you don't have the support system, and I'm preparing the Shana Alav girls now so that in four months from now you don't come to us and ask the question. How do I stay strong? I'm preparing. I'm giving you the answer now. You go out of your support system in order to discover who you are. That's part of the process of growing up. It's part of what makes us strong. It's part of what makes us great. Imagine a person who walked around their entire life with crutches, and then you take the crutches away and you say, "How am I going to learn how to walk?" What do you mean?
You never knew how to walk if you're just walking around with crutches. It's dafka when you let go of the crutches and learn how to walk. When a little child is learning how to walk, what do we do? We put out our little fingers, and the little kid grasps with those beautiful grasps that only a child has, and they do that little waddle, and you pretend that the kid is walking, and you go, look at you, tzaddik, you're doing great. And then what do we do? As good parents, what do we do? We hold up our fingers, and they reach up. And we take a step back. And what does a little kid do? Because they believe in themselves, because they've had a tremendous amount of support, and because the parent is sending a message to the child: "You're okay. You got this." What does a little kid do? They take that hesitating first step.
And then one. And when you take that first step, what does every kid in the family do? Oh my! It's videotaped for all of eternity. Google Photos will bring it. Seventeen years ago today, the kid took a first step. And it's celebrated, and they call it grandparents. He took his first step today. She took her first step today. It's amazing, right? Everyone's clapping. I'm always sitting there going, I took like ten thousand steps today. Nobody clapped for me. I need my claps. I don't feel good enough about myself. Tell me I'm awesome, Little kid takes that first step And then they fall And they sit there with their padded diaper. And they sit there and look up at you. What does a parent do? Go, it's okay. You're allowed to fall. This is part of the process of learning how to walk. Going down to Eretz Yisrael, going to the exile, going to the gulliest places of our life—it doesn't mean life is over. It means you're learning how to walk. It means you're learning how to become who you really are.
So yes, here in this beautiful seminary bubble, what a tremendous gift to be able to come to Yeshivat Mir Hakodesh, to be able to have this amazing support system, and to take those first steps as you're holding on to somebody's hand. Beautiful, amazing, givaldik. We will miss it And we will miss you. And it's okay. Now go take your steps. Go learn how to walk. Go into that place where you don't have the same support system and discover who you really are. In that place, Beis Hashem, there is a nugget, there is a spark, there is something that needs to be found, something that needs to be mined, something that could not be found otherwise. Adam and Chava were one, but they weren't really one. They were facing in the wrong direction. Hashem said, 'Split them. Let them go find each other.' That's true oneness. The soul doesn't come down into this world in order to go back up. The soul comes down into this world in order to discover a level of godliness that it could never have discovered when it was in Shamayim. A Jew goes into the scalus, into Galus, to discover the holy chutzpah. The holy chutzpah that says, "I'm a yid," and you'll never be able to take that away from you. Girls, good Shabbos.
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