I was on a packed bus (this happened more than once) and a younger guy offered his seat to an elderly man. “That guy's a Tzaddik, he really has respect for elders...,” one might think. Actually, everyone did - except the elderly man. The old man started yelling at the young guy, throwing out words as if it was a baseball, “Don't do me any favors! I am probably stronger than you are! Dumb young guy thinks I am too old to stand on a bus...” He was going at it for about five minutes.
Sometimes, I hesitate giving up my seat to old men just in case the situation might happen to me. I still offer the seat if I'm not too late though.
What do I mean by, “If I'm not too late?”
Have you ever been on a packed bus and wanted to offer your seat to an older man, however, by the time you offer it, someone else already did? It's happened to me on numerous occasions.
In this week's parasha (btw, it's a double parasha), we speak about the building of the Mishkan. The second aliyah repeatedly mentioned, “Everyone, men and women, donated to the building of the miskan.” However, when the Torah mentioned the donation of the stones (to the ephod and the choshen,) it mentioned only the Nesi'im.
Why did the Torah specify them and no one else? Rashi says, the Nesi'im were the last ones to donate to the Mishkan, but the first ones to sacrifice at the Chanukat Ha'mizbeh'ach.
It wasn't because they held one thing was more choshiv than the other. The Nesi'im wanted to supply whatever material was lacking in the building of the Mishkan. They thought that if they donated the material which was lacking to complete the Mishkan, then it was as if they built the whole thing. The problem is, they under-estimated Bnei Yisroel's generosity in donating everything they owned. Additionally, Bnei Yisroel were so zealous in wanting to contribute for the Mishkan, all the material was collected within two days!
Even though they had good intentions, the Nesi'im still postponed the fulfillment of a mitzvah. They later learned their lesson, did teshuva, and were the first ones to bring the sacrifices by the inauguration.
The next time we are faced with a mitzvah, let's not let it slip away.
Have a wonderful Shabbos,
Nisso
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