This week while working in my office, I answered a phone call from a man frantically seeking a rabbi. He explained that his grandmother was minutes from passing away and needed a rabbi to attend to her on her deathbed. I double checked that I had in fact heard correctly, following which the fellow confessed that he had no money to his name. “It’s ok” I told him, “we’re not in it for the money.”
I grabbed a pair of tefillin and dashed to the nursing home. On the way over, the man told me that his aunt was keeping a bedside vigilance next to his grandmother. His own mother was not present because she hadn’t spoken to her sister in twenty years. Upon arriving at the hospital, I donned tefillin with the grandson and together we all recited the Shema Yisroel. As I said the viduy prayers with the dying woman, I began thinking about this powerful prayer.
The returning of one's soul to G-d at the end of its journey in this world is probably the most profound moment in a person's life. The viduy prayer, as well as the crucial setting in which it is recited, envelops one in an atmosphere of nostalgia, immersing him in a lifetime of memories. Waves of regret and sorrow wash over him, pricking him with the knowledge that he often allowed petty stupidities to overshadow the truly important things in life.
The Talmud draws our attention to a fascinating fact of life: while man enters the world with clenched fists, he departs from it with palms outstretched. The significance behind this, explain our sages, lies in the child’s acknowledgement of a lifetime to come, of conquests to be won and challenges to be conquered, whereas the dying man lets go of everything he ever held on to, taking nothing to the grave but the good deeds he performed throughout his life.
How often do we look back and remember not our material possessions and luxuries, but rather the relationships we have formed, both with G-d and with our fellow man. When a baby is born he cries and everyone around him smiles, how fortunate are those who die with a smile while those around them cry. Let us endeavour to live a life that we will one day reflect on with joy and satisfaction, a life free of guilt and regrets. You may have messed up before today, but always remember, it’s never too late to make a change. After all, today is the first day of the rest of your life.
Samuel wrote...