“I may be dreaming but I’m not sleeping”
| The climax of one of the Torah’s most dramatic stories is when Joseph, Egypt’s Viceroy, reveals his identity to his unsuspecting brothers. For the past 22 years, his father (Jacob) thought he had been killed by a wild animal. Why did Joseph so long before telling his father that he was alive and thriving in Egypt? Ramban (1194-1270) addresses this question and answers that it goes back to the two dreams Joseph had years ago—dreams that caused enmity in the family. But Joseph knew that these were not simply dreams, they were prophetic visions needing to be actualized. Had Jacob known Joseph was alive, he would have immediately come to Egypt and the dreams would not have been materialized. Joseph had to endure much hardship and wait 22 years for his dreams to come to fruition. But Joseph never forgot his dreams and made conscious efforts and a strategic plan to fulfill them. In Hebrew, dream (chalom) has the same letters as “salt” (melach). Just as salt preserves food, so too dreams preserve our life’s purpose. Your dreams reveal a great deal about you. Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. had a dream of freedom from racial prejudice and he lived his life according to it. Pursuing our dreams demonstrates what our values are. If a man dreams about being secluded on an island with a harem, that shows who he is, what his values are, and what he stands for. He will not lead the same life as one who dreams of helping inner city children go to college or opening a soup kitchen. At some point in life, each of us has had dreams—what will my marriage, children, or career look like. Many of us had idealistic dreams but where are they today? Have they been forgotten or abandoned due to obstacle’s life has thrown our way? This is a genuine tragedy because it means we have given up the very things that once gave our life meaning, purpose, and direction. Some people have Jewish dreams like building their community, helping Israel, or having a vision that can impact Jews. I met a young woman who was going to change the face of the Jewish student population at her university but she got worn out and frustrated by the bureaucracy of the organized Jewish community on campus and in that city. She gave up on her beautiful and ambitious dream and transferred to a school with no viable Jewish presence and eventually took a path in life foreign to what had once motivated her. Her dreams as well as her Jewish identity didn’t just die, they were abandoned. Imagine a young girl who dreams about being a doctor; she really wants to help and heal people. When she’s in college, she doesn’t feel like taking Organic chemistry due to its academic demands. Wouldn’t it be a tragedy to allow one class to hold her back from fulfilling her dream? Sometimes in life, one or two challenges have the ability to sideline our dreams. Just as salt preserves, so too we must preserve our dreams. There’s a famous Yeshiva in Israel called Ponevezh, named for the Lithuanian city in which it was founded. Rabbi Yosef Shlomo Kahaneman, who had lost his wife and most of his family and yeshiva during the Holocaust, managed to escape to Israel in 1940. In June, 1942 he began a campaign to rebuild the yeshiva. At that time, Nazi general Erwin Rommel—the Desert Fox— and his African corps were just a few kilometers west of the Suez Canal. His plan was to overpower the Allied forces, cross through Egypt, and take over Palestine. This didn’t deter Rabbi Kahaneman from his dream; he purchased land on a deserted hill in a suburb of Tel Aviv. The real estate agent could not believe that someone would want to make such a significant purchase at such a gloomy time. He couldn’t contain himself and asked, “Is the Rabbi dreaming? In a matter of days, we may all be heading to the gas chambers?” The Rabbi’s response became famous, “I may be dreaming but I am not sleeping.” We learn from Joseph (Rabbi Kahaneman’s name was also Joseph) that it’s not enough just to dream, we must do everything possible to fulfill our dreams. Take a moment right now and ask yourself, “What are my dreams? Have I neglected or even forgotten them?” If you have none, go out and get some! Whatever the case, stay awake and don’t stop dreaming. Good Shabbos |