Indeed, as the clay in the hand of the potter, who, when he wishes expands it and when he wishes contracts it; so are we in Your hand, O You who remembers deeds of the loving kindness; Look to the covenant and do not regard our evil inclination. Indeed, as the stone in the hand of the mason, who, when he wishes retains it and when he wishes smashes it; so are we in Your hand, O You who gives life and brings death; Look to the covenant and do not regard our evil inclination.
This poem is recited on Yom Kippur, our soul is compared to clay and stone in the hands of a master craftsman. Realizing this we willingly accept upon ourselves Hashem’s judgement for we know that His judgement is lovingly meant to repair any defect that we may have. Hashem in His mercy helps us make a tikun neshuma.
Reuven Reuvini lived until 101. When he died he left a house filled with junk. "Our father was from the old generation. They never threw anything away." said the older son. "Yeah," said the younger son, "look at all this junk." They set to work clearing out the house. It took days to go through it. 'I don't believe this-- an old kitchen sink!" one of them laughed. They couldn't get over what a ridiculous habit their father had.
They finally got around to the kitchen. "Something's strange here," said one of the sons. "I don't see any broken dishes. It seems weird Dad saved everything but those." One morning at shul the sons approached the Rabbi and told him what they had found in their father's house.
"Your father had a great reverence for everything the Almighty gave him and it's something we should learn from. He saved anything that still had value. Obviously broken dishes cannot be repaired. But whatever can be fixed is worth saving!"
As we prepare ourselves for Yom HaDin, the first step is to realize that we are broken. We are broken individually and we are broken as a nation. We come before the Almighty as a shattered vessel. We place our souls in the hands of the Master Craftsman.
And as long as we can say "I can be repaired!" we have hope that Hashem will not throw us away. Hashem values us and gives us purpose in this world. May it be His will that we are written in the book of life!
Over the years people have asked me if I would ever draw cartoons depicting some of the cases found in Yora Daya. Well, the answer is yes! I recently published a sefer called The Great Game of Kashrut. Click on the link to find out more: The Great Game of Kashrut
To order a copy of The Great Game of Kashrut follow this link: The Great Game of Kashrut
If you would like to dedicate a Davar Torah in honor of a special occasion or in memory of a beloved family member please contact Yisroel Simon at yisroel@judaism613.com.
Good Shabbos,R’ Channenjudaism613.org