God closed the Door on Noach

In parshat Noach we find a person who needs to withstand the pressures of a corrupt society.  We are told that Noach was the only Tzadik in his generation. Can you imagine his life?! He was surrounded by people doing the horrible things. How does someone not fall to the level of the people around him?. Not only did Noach not sink to their level but he raised himself to the level of a Tzadik. One who walked with Hashem. Hahsem selected Noach and his family to be saved from world destruction.  I think that Noach was able to stay away from the pressures of his surrounding because he isolated himself. He became only interested in himself and his family. Hashem told him to build an Teva and he did it. Hashem told him to enter the Teva and Noach did not ask Hashem for his best friends to join him because he had none. He was occupied with building an inclosure, the Teva, that would save his family. Interestingly after Noach, his family and the animals board the Teva the Pasuk reads "And Hashem closed him inside".  My understanding it that Hashem was isolating Noach from all the the bad that was going to happen in the flood waters outside the Teva. Inside the Teva Noach was able to teach his family and feed the animals. Noach was living metaphoraclly in a Teva his whole life. Secluded from the horrible people of his generation and the bad influences. Noach's life teaches the lesson of protecting youself first, removing ourselves from bad situations. Removing ourselves from bad people, friends.  As students in a school you might be with some children who are making fun of someone on the bus. What do you do? Do you join in? Do you move away. You might be at a playdate on Shabbat and the your friend starts doing something you know is wrong. What do you do? Do you remove yourself?.  Moving away from a situation is not easy, but sometimes required.  There are times that we need to close ourselves in our own Teva to protect ourselves, just like Hashem closed Noach in the Teva to save him,   It is better not to associate ourselves with people who do the wrong and bad things.The lesson from Noach's life is simple to see and hear but hard to accomplish. I pray that we all have the stregnth when needed to remove ourselves from bad influences.

A Message from Martians

At this week’s Shabbat Assembly I talked to the students about listening to people. There are times when people - our parents, teachers or even our friends - attempt to tell us something and we don't listen. Either we think we know better, or we wonder who they think they are that they believe they can tell us what to do. But as this cute story about a trip to Mars illustrates, others may be trying to tell us a very important message. 

Two astronauts land on Mars. Their mission: to check whether there is oxygen on the planet.

 "Give me the box of matches,” says one. "Either it burns and there is oxygen, or nothing happens."He takes the box, and is ready to strike a match, when out of the blue, a little green Martian appears waving all six of his arms and yelling..."No, no, don't!"The two guys look at each other, worried. Could there be an unknown explosive gas on Mars?Still, he takes another match...and… A crowd of hysterical green Martians is coming to them, all waving their arms. "No, no, don't do that!" One of the astronauts says, "This looks serious. What are they afraid of? Nonetheless we're here for Science, to know if man can breathe on Mars." So he strikes a match--which flames up, burns down, and NOTHING HAPPENS. So he turns to the Martians and asks, "Why did you want to prevent us from striking a match?" The leader of the Martians says, "It's Shabbos."

So when your friends, teachers, or parents are trying to tell you something, take the time to hear them out and then make your decision. These people are looking out for you and trying to help you. After hearing their comments you can make a more informed decision. 

Noach with a Twist

This week’s Shabbat assembly for Parshat Noach included a surprise skit performed by several 5^th grade girls.  They called it, Tanach with a Twist. The girls wrote an adaptation of the Flood Story in Parshat Noach.  The main character was Noa, (a girl), and G-d told her to build an ark.  The five girls did a great job in telling the story in a fun and engaging manner for their young audience.  The first, second and  third graders were riveted by the performance.  The girls used many stuffed animals as props, and the person who played G-d was hidden, so that G-d’s commands seemed to come out of thin air.  One of the best lines of the play was when Noa thanked  G-d for saving them and asks for a place to eat.  G-d says,  “we have no restaurants.  I just destroyed the world.”  Noa responded, “I guess I can make one called Noa’s Ark.”

Observing these 5h graders prepare all week for this five minute skit and seeing the reaction they received from almost 250 students, I realized that despite all the technology and the media these children have at their finger tips, they still enjoy and love to watch other children perform.  It was a powerful lesson and reminder to me, as an educator and parent, about the power of children teaching other children.  Our children are our best and most precious resource for making Judaism and Torah alive and exciting.

Thank you to Efrat, Daniella S., Gittel, Miriam and Yael M. for your great performance.