Flying Through Life - The Journey From Yesterday To Tommorow
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Loading ...The Big Picture
The notion of “what comes up must come down” can be a startling reality. Is everything bound by the rules of gravity pulling us down? Perhaps it is only things that don’t propel themselves. It is as the great Baalei Mussar suggest: if you are not moving up in spirituality then you are falling down! Life must be constantly driven as there are several forces that will bring it down. Not only are there forces that will compromise the intent but they will also cause a misdirection. Nothing is simply set into motion and forgotten about. There are always opposing forces ahead.
The observations we make within the physical realm are often adaptable to the metaphysical. We all have a trajectory that we are following, but over time we may shift off course. We must constantly evaluate and adjust to the conditions that we face in order to achieve our goals. There are times where our current speed and direction is not noticeable as we are slowly drifting off course. Such an acute shift may not be noticed unless viewed from afar. The misalignment is not visible and often neglected until due evidence is brought. The instruments on hand are only as good as the one who interprets them. Even poor instruments can suffice when you can keep the scale in mind. You finally made it right above your landing spot. Touch down softly and embrace the new discovery.
Take-Off
Unlike most take offs ours begins with the pilot sleeping. We aren’t cruising at a high altitude, and are not serving beverages. There really isn’t much going on. Why is it that our lives begin in such a state? Unable to function in the normal sense, unable to perform the mitzvos until later in life. It would seem to be a fair question had we assumed that childhood lacks the ability to carry out the will of Hashem. I always used to answer this question by making reference to the order of study that Chazal[1]dictate. We are told that at the age of five one should learn the Written Code of Torah, followed by the Oral Law of the Mishnah at the age of ten. This Mishnah always seemed to perplex me as children are instructed to learn but alas they are not obligated to follow. That must mean that the level of understanding is enough to grasp something worthwhile but nonetheless not enough to be held responsible for. It may in fact go further than that. It is my belief that the younger years of childhood are there as a stepping stone in taking upon the tremendous yoke of the Torah. The Almighty wants us to follow His Torah perfectly and therefore gives us an opportunity to learn it without having to worry about its observance in our beginning state. This is a nice idea until I heard an answer from my great Rebbi, Rav Nochum Lansky Shlita. He said that what I said doesn’t fully answer the question, as a child does not learn anything prior to the age of three. As the Mishnah here says the age of five, but the Rambam does bring down that when a child begins to speak begin teaching him certain pasukim. My theory fails to explain the need for childhood prior to that age. My Rebbi made an interesting interpretation on the gemara[2] says that Rebbi Akiva waited his entire life (כל ימי חיי) for the moment in which he would be able to carry out the mitzvah of giving one’s life for the glorification of the name of the Almighty. Asked my Rebbi why does it say kol, meaning entire? He answered that even when Rebbi Akiva was a child this was his desire. He said this in contrast to some that would say that Rebbi Akiva was alluding to the time in his life when he was not a learned individual. When I asked what he were to answer in response to that he said that isn’t kol, it seems that for Rebbi Akiva to say all of his life must mean more than his adult past. What we learn from this according to my Rebbi, and even within my little understanding is that the small steps we take in the beginning carry great weight. I asked Rebbi what was it that Rebbi Akiva could have possibly done to express this idea, Rebbi responded by saying that the depths of your soul contain that special task. It is even at a young age when you are a simple creature you still emit this deep will that will eventually be the life force that carries you through your life.
Setting the Destination
You are airborne. Do you know where you are going? Is your destination set? Is this a non-stop flight…or are you taking your time? In our lives, we only have a one-way ticket. True - with the great gift of teshuvah we are able to undo the past and preserve the future. Do we look at teshuvah as a modification of the past in which it opens the horizons for tommorow, or perhaps it is settings us back on the course that we are originally taking. What’s the difference you may ask!? The difference is do we look at teshuvah as remapping the past or simply correcting the future. It is my firm belief that it is both. As the great Rambam spells out to us that the process of Teshuvah requires both regret of the past as well as a decision to cease future occurrences of the “step in the wrong direction”. It is evidently clear that both are needed and that they are two distinct aspects. Honestly this requires its own discussion but I will simply say that even though the fixing of the future usually implies to regret of the past it is not always so. In fact the parable we looking at can bring out this concept. If we went one-hundred miles off course we want to get to the destination that we planned on, at our current location we can simply compensate for our mistake and change our direction to account for the error. In such a case it is possible that we didn’t care about the wrong doing we took in the beginning we only realized that we must change our course now. That is a lack of regret that is needed in the process of teshuvah.
The flight began and we are travelling at top speed. Trust me, auto-pilot isn’t a good idea. You are surely going to crash? Why? The computer knows where it is going. Our auto-pilot is made to train pilot how to pilot a plane, the pilot would never learn how to fly the plane if the auto pilot were fully functional, therefore we must set the auto pilot in a way in which the pilot must overcome it and direct the plane using his manual and map instead of relying on the on-board computers. You should be asking…why do we need to do that, if the plane can really fly well enough by itself why do we need pilots at all? The answer is because the head of the airline wishes to train his pilots to be able to control planes that malfunction. A good pilot will know how to respond to all conditions and accommodate for all failures. When things get really rough chas v’shalom he will be able to make a crash landing and evacuate the passengers effectively. We must always daven for protection from the worst and aspire for continued bliss. Set your course, grab a hold of your life and all those who are touched by it.
Staying on Route
Every plane is different. Different sizes, occupancy, features etc. Even within planes there are many different types for different purposes. There are prop planes, gliders, cargo planes, jet planes, drop planes, I don’t know so many but I’m sure there are many more. Each plane has a specific role, one that is befitting for one purpose may be a failure for another. It is likely that pilots also have their specialty. Without question there are discrepancies between the planes that would require specific training. Within the numerous factors involved in flying the slightest imperfection can have startling results. The performance of an aircraft is twofold; its upkeep and its piloting. You can have the best pilot in the world but there is not to much you can do if you are out of fuel. You are not the Maker of the aircraft, but you are currently responsible for it. Before every flight you have an obligation that you check your vitals and their functionality. If something is off, it must be fixed prior to take-off.
In order to reach your destination as efficiently as possible you must follow the quickest route with optimal speed. If your nose is angled too high you will experience air resistance causing turbulance as well as slowing you down. You must keep your self level, in touch with what lays below you as well as what hover above you. You must know your place and embrace it, not too high or low. In order to remain at the current altitude you must keep the pitch of the plane straight and balanced. The truth is that you want to constantly soar above avoiding all that lurks below. In order to do that you must keep your nose up and increase speed to accommodate to the change in resistance. Don’t jump too quickly as a change in altitude too quickly will disrupt the cabin pressure. The best advice to elevating properly is through steady constant elevation.
Suddenly Falling
Your beacon is set, your coordinates are correct, altitude and pressure are fine. All looks clear and peaceful. Let go for a second it watch it all drop. The weather conditions change you must accommodate for them, quickly and cleanly, don’t rock the boat you don’t want to spill anything. The destination may be clearly set but sometimes your path is not as clear. Laying before you are two options how do you decide? A thought-out decision is a must, but both options have ups and downs. What do you do? You call traffic control, you ask for aid. Look up to the heavens, and ask the One who guides every inch of this world for direction. Your radio communications seem to be broke, you don’t hear a response. If you were truly desperate wouldn’t you keep trying? Hoping they listen. He is always listening…you may not see blinking lights but He is always listening. How will you know? He made the instruments well enough that you will be able to guide yourself safely under all conditions. Why put it past Him, it is his plane after all? So you can’t understand it…who made you an aerospace engineer…that’s what I thought. There are always possibilities that you didn’t consider and even if you did try again. In addition to asking traffic control for aid, you can radio your mentors, an experience pilot. One who had studied the ways of the heavens and below, one who helps others and has been in the same seat as you. Ask him, he is wiser than you and has learned from the best. Sometimes reading the manual yourself can help, but other times you will simply miss the point. Not everything is as clear as day, don’t expect it to be. Look for yourself, but when in doubt seek clarification…don’t just “give it a try”, you have an enormous responsibility in your hands. Your life is a given, but the entire crew and the passengers aboard, they are all at your grasp.
Explanation
This is only a small explanation to this mashal. The truth is that a good mashal can have several understandings. If you have another perspective or other factors that I left out please let me know.
This mashal may or may not be clear to you what the nimshul is, and even it is not every single detail may be. I cannot possibly clarify everything as there is no end, but the big things I can. The plane is your existence. Your consciousness is the pilot. The journey is your Life. The head of the airline is Hashem. The traffic control is your tefillos to Hashem. Auto Pilot is your yetzer hara. The experienced pilot is a Rebbe. The manual is the Torah. The instruments are the natural wonderments in the world. The crew are the people directly involved in your life, aka your wife, family, students etc. The crew is Klal Yisroel, all that you do impacts them as well whether you notice or not.
