The first Jewish president calls up his mother and invites her over for
Passover.
"Oy, I'll need to book a flight and it's going to cost so much!"
Her son responds, "Mom! I'm the president! I'll send Air Force One
for you!”
"Oy, I'll need to find a cab and schlep my bags. It's just too
much!"
"Mom! I'm the president! I'll pick you up! Then my secret service agents
will carry your luggage for you!"
"Oy, I'll need to book a hotel."
"Mom! I'm the president! You
can stay at the White House!"
Finally, she gives in. "Okay,"
she says, almost begrudgingly. Two minutes later, her best friend Shprintza
calls.
"Nu, Sarah’le, what's new?"
"Oy, I'm going to my son for Pesach."
"Who, the doctor?"
"No . . . the other one."
״לְכֹל לְרֹאשׁ״ — אָמַר רַב חָנָן
בַּר רָבָא אָמַר רַבִּי יוֹחָנָן: אֲפִילּוּ רֵישׁ גַּרְגִּיתָא מִן שְׁמַיָּא
מַנּוּ לֵיהּ
Rav Chanan bar Rava quoted Rabbi
Yocḥanan: Even the chief waterhole digger is appointed by Heaven.
תָּנוּ רַבָּנַן:
הָרוֹאֶה אוּכְלוּסֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל, אוֹמֵר: ״בָּרוּךְ … חֲכַם הָרָזִים״ — שֶׁאֵין
דַּעְתָּם דּוֹמָה זֶה לָזֶה, וְאֵין פַּרְצוּפֵיהֶן דּוֹמִים זֶה לָזֶה
The Sages taught: One who sees
multitudes of Israel recites: Blessed…Who knows all secrets, for their minds
are unlike each other and their faces are unlike each other.
As cliché as it sounds, every
Jewish parent seems to want their child to become a doctor, lawyer, or
accountant. Rav Chanan’s teaching is
important on so many levels. First, we
need to know that whichever fields our children choose, it’s not their
decision. If they’ve pursued their
passion, then it was implanted in their soul by the Creator. Hashem ensures that every position in this
world, even the most mundane, is filled by willing individuals.
How is that possible? It’s vital to recognize that the same way
that no two people have the same face, no two people have the same minds and
perspectives. If there are a million different
faces out there, there are just as many different mindsets.
Think about like this: Are there
certain occupations that you would never engage in, even if they paid you a
million bucks? Maybe you can’t stand the
sight of blood and so there’s no way you could imagine being a surgeon. Maybe you hate numbers and the thought of
looking at balance sheets and tax forms every day would keep you far away from
accountancy. Some people dream of become
flight attendants on account of all the international travel perks that come
with the job. Other people couldn’t
imagine the thought of spending hours and hours in a metal tube, waiting on passengers
with unreasonable expectations. Some
people love driving, finding it relieves their stress. They cherish the thought of spending days in
a transport truck driving from one end of the country to the other. Others find driving incredibly stressful and
couldn’t imagine being on the road all day, every day. That’s the blessing of a million different
and unique mindsets.
Unfortunately, too many parents find
it difficult to accept that their children are on a mission from Heaven that
might be different to the mission they’ve chosen for their kids. As parents, we certainly have a duty to
direct and guide our children to make rational career decisions. At the same time, however, we mustn’t box
them in to certain choices, just because we hold particular views of the hierarchy
of various occupations. If they have
certain inklings which are not entirely unreasonable, we need to encourage them
to fulfil their appointed Divine mission.
The second reason that Rav Chanan’s
teaching is of paramount importance pertains to the high regard we must have
for all people, no matter their chosen trade or profession. You might never have considered becoming a refuse
loader (a.k.a. bin man), but you’d better be exceedingly grateful to the fellow
who did. Somehow, G-d placed into his
heart the seed that it would be pretty neat to get up early each morning, get
paid to do your daily workout consisting of cardio and weight training, and then
be done for the day by early afternoon, with the rest of the day off.
When you think about it like that,
you realize how much respect you should have for every person, regardless of
their occupation. What would you do
without the refuse loader? Imagine nobody wanted the job and you had to take
your own rubbish down to the dump each week.
Now, that’s what we call the helping professions! And the same is true for almost any
occupation you could think of. If there’s
someone else doing it and saving you from engaging in it, you owe them a debt
of gratitude.
For every occupation on the planet,
Hashem created a human being with a desire to engage in it. They’re not just doing a job; they’re on a
mission from G-d. That’s the beauty of
all the different mindsets that the Creator imbued each and every one of us
with. May you find your calling in life
and fulfil your Divine mission and may you respect every member of every
occupation, and always remember that without them, your life would be very
different!
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