Vayechi -- Goodbye Jacob, Goodbye Joseph

I am far behind on my Torah blogging for numerous personal reasons. But, here I am again, ready to dive in and try! While I was off-blog, Joseph was born to Jacob, raised, persecuted by his brothers, thrown in a pit, and ended up in Egypt where he rose to power, second only to Pharoah. He has sent for his family and forgiven his brothers, understanding that God had planned all of this for a higher reason. At the beginning of this portion, his father, Jacob/Israel, is about to die.

Jacob sends for Joseph to ask a favor: That he be buried in the place HIS father, Abraham, purchased to be a burial ground for his family. What strikes me most about this is the way it is phrased. Jacob asks his son for this favor, PLEASE. It embodies the whole "circle of life" thing. The parent becomes the child and the child must care for their parent.

After the burial, everyone returns to Egypt. Joseph's brothers are all still worried that Joseph is secretly still angry with them for the way they treated him and they tell Joseph a bold-faced lie in order to get him to forgive them. Joseph says, "Of COURSE I forgive you! All this had to happen in order to put me in a position where I could help people!" Joseph is the only one of his family who sees the Big Picture. The brothers are happy he has forgiven them, but to Joseph, there is nothing to forgive because it was all in God's hands in the first place. I guess the lesson here...at least what I am gleaning from it, is that old saying "When you're walking through hell, keep on walking!"

I am still in Dallas, and I'm going to be for longer than I'd hoped for. I have been fairly upset at the prospect, feeling really, really ready to be back home in the Sonora Desert of Tucson. I guess what I need to do at this point is just let it go, be realistic about what it will take to get there, and believe that God has me still here for a reason. Maybe it is just to see Andy's wedding...who knows? But I am here and I will just have to enjoy my friends and the things that I like about the city rather than focus on the things I don't like. Joseph didn't sit and bemoan his lot in life. He just kept going and his life became very rich, spirtually and materially. I have a more realistic plan for getting back to Tucson and, as long as I stick to it, I will be nestled under the Catalina Mountains again soon...soon enough. I will try to be like Joseph, and be happy with what I have now, rather than fantasize about how it would be better IF.
Shalom rav!
Lev