Seventy Souls – A Family Portrait

After the drama of the Joseph saga has reached its climax and Yosef reunites with his brothers and then with his father, we find ourselves, in Parshat Vayigash, beginning in Genesis 46, with a list of the descendants of Jacob, “his sons, and grandsons, his daughters and granddaughters-all his offspring. ” (Genesis 46:7).

Here they sit, finally re-united, a family. Yes, a family who has been broken in the past. Yes, a family with terrible trust problems, but here they sit, together.

As someone who takes lots of photos (don’t we all?) I was struck by the magnitude of this moment, knowing that this is just the beginning of a journey for all of those sitting in this”family portrait.”  What struck me more than anything else is that everyone showed up!  Yes, this was under the order of Joseph and Pharaoh, and of course, HaKadosh Baruch Hu, plays a part in the story, but I was so pleased for Ya’akov, for Yosef and for the brothers, that they showed up together.  We can see them in this imagined portrait, before their real journey begins. We learn so much   in Sefer Breisheet of the imperfections of families, so all the more credit here where the family sits together.

Please visit this family portrait with me.

Shabbat Shalom

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Seventy people sit for a family portrait.

The Family Portrait. Created by AI

In the middle of the large group sits and old man, wizened and wrinkled, looking slightly confused at all of the hubbub surrounding him, but still he is smiling. He is surrounded by a many young and middle aged me who smile for the camera, but perhaps they smile less at each other? Strangely, this photos seems to include mostly men and the viewer wonders, “Where are the all the women and girls?”

On one side of the smiling old man is a slender younger man who holds the old man’s arm protectively. On his other side sits a well dressed middle aged man. He wears different clothing than the rest, perhaps styled differently, and his hair is cropped close in a style not usually seen. Although this man seems more worldly, his eyes are red rimmed and he squeezes himself close to the old man as though he is surprised to find himself in the photo and never wants to let him go.

Appearing around the edges, around the foreground and background of the photo we see the younger children squeezing into spots between their fathers, looking mischievous, as children often do, as they are frozen on the page as mere youth, not aware of what awaits them in the future.

Seventy souls sit for a family portrait. It seems so simple, but behind the smiles, no matter the century, no matter the circumstances, what do we know of the past conflicts between brothers? As we view the image, what can we know of the the heartbreak and disappointment of those smiling at the camera? How would we know the pressures people felt or the efforts people made to be in just this place at just this time?

But wait, let us not gloss over the meaning. All of the family, all 70 souls appear in this family photo together. They overcame their petty jealousies and family arguments to arrive at this event. Not one person is missing from this photo. Here sits the family, frozen in time forever. Someday, years later, the family will gaze at this portrait and say, “Look! This is who we were then.”

This is a specific portrait painted before the Breisheet family story wends its way into the beginning of our national narrative, in Sefer Shemot, but this photo could easily be a portrait taken at a family wedding, a Passover Seder or another happy occasion. (Note that I say happy occasion, because we want to show up for each other on happy occasions, not only sad occasions.)

So, to the seventy souls peering into the camera, we raise our glasses to you. To you and all of your families.

A toast to the importance of showing up.

Let us always celebrate together.