I had an extremely busy schedule this past week. Between moving all our belongings to the new house, unpacking, creating a power point for a work presentation, grocery shopping, attending an upshernish, shopping for new furniture, attending and presenting at an important work conference, and all the other little (and big) tasks that come up during the week, I had very little time for anything else.
The little free time I did have presented itself at random, unexpected times, ie: 10 minutes while waiting in line at the checkout counter, 8.5 minutes waiting for the clerk to check the back for more bookcases, 25 minutes waiting for the new anti-virus program to download.
What to do during those precious unaccounted for moments? Reading the latest Readers Digest on the magazine rack? Browsing furniture I know I’m not going to buy? Surfing the internet for the latest news and blog entries? There are so many different ways to keep oneself busy that it is nearly overwhelming. And thus, the phrase, "I am bored" never enters my lexicon. I don't remember the last time I said that. Maybe when I was six years old. In fact, never before in history have there been so many accessible ways to fill our time, right at our very finger tips.
Yet, for every negative (or even neutral) there is a positive. We live in a time where we can access Torah literally at the push of a button. We can carry the entire Talmud in our pockets, and have 1000s of classes plugged into the cigarette lighter in our car. We have a choice: we can use our smart phones to read the latest Twitter feed about a friend of ours waiting in line at a grocery store, or we can read the daily section of the parsha.
It is said of Avraham Avinu that, “Abraham was old and come along in days" (Beraishis 24:1). Our sages tell us that this means that Avraham did not merely pass through life letting his days slip by; rather he utilized every single day, every single hour, and in fact every single minute to its maximum. This is an amazing feat, considering the time period which Avraham Avinu lived in. He didn’t have readily accessible Torah Texts, or shiurim he could attend, and yet he wouldn’t let a moment pass where he didn’t maximize his potential.
Today when we have so many different tools that allow us to make the most of every minute, let’s make sure to make Avraham Avinu proud. Let’s ask ourselves, it Avraham had an iPhone, what would he do with it? How would he use it to make the most of his day?
Wishing you a wonderfully productive and inspiring week,
Nuta Yisrael
The little free time I did have presented itself at random, unexpected times, ie: 10 minutes while waiting in line at the checkout counter, 8.5 minutes waiting for the clerk to check the back for more bookcases, 25 minutes waiting for the new anti-virus program to download.
What to do during those precious unaccounted for moments? Reading the latest Readers Digest on the magazine rack? Browsing furniture I know I’m not going to buy? Surfing the internet for the latest news and blog entries? There are so many different ways to keep oneself busy that it is nearly overwhelming. And thus, the phrase, "I am bored" never enters my lexicon. I don't remember the last time I said that. Maybe when I was six years old. In fact, never before in history have there been so many accessible ways to fill our time, right at our very finger tips.
Yet, for every negative (or even neutral) there is a positive. We live in a time where we can access Torah literally at the push of a button. We can carry the entire Talmud in our pockets, and have 1000s of classes plugged into the cigarette lighter in our car. We have a choice: we can use our smart phones to read the latest Twitter feed about a friend of ours waiting in line at a grocery store, or we can read the daily section of the parsha.
It is said of Avraham Avinu that, “Abraham was old and come along in days" (Beraishis 24:1). Our sages tell us that this means that Avraham did not merely pass through life letting his days slip by; rather he utilized every single day, every single hour, and in fact every single minute to its maximum. This is an amazing feat, considering the time period which Avraham Avinu lived in. He didn’t have readily accessible Torah Texts, or shiurim he could attend, and yet he wouldn’t let a moment pass where he didn’t maximize his potential.
Today when we have so many different tools that allow us to make the most of every minute, let’s make sure to make Avraham Avinu proud. Let’s ask ourselves, it Avraham had an iPhone, what would he do with it? How would he use it to make the most of his day?
Wishing you a wonderfully productive and inspiring week,
Nuta Yisrael
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