The Movers

They came to move some furniture into the house. They were calm and patient, and quite meticulous. Every move was carefully planned before they did it. During each act of lifting and moving, they communicated clearly, making sure that each one knew what the other was doing, and that every step was agreed to by all.

At one point one of them bumped his head, and another asked him if he was ok, and told him to take good care of himself. Finally they finished.

As they were about to leave, I thanked one of them for the hard work they do to help others. He told me that the important thing is to remain calm, do one step at a time, and it will get done.

Perhaps there is a lesson here for humanity. When we focus on doing good things, and we are gracious to one another, we then have the potential to reach consensus on how to move forward.

Interestingly, just before they left, a city by-law officer driving by, stopped and informed them that they were blocking the sidewalk. The mover told him that they had finished, and were about to leave. As the officer pulled away, I remarked that fortunately the officer didn’t come earlier.

Later it occurred to me, that as much as we plan and coordinate, and work hard, ultimately success depends on G-d’s blessing. If that officer had come earlier, I don’t know how the movers would have managed. By Divine Providence, the officer came after they had just finished. Perhaps it was G-d’s way of reminding, that His blessing is what ensures success. Indeed we always need G-d’s blessing, and the channel to receive it is through the everyday life and conduct in accordance with His Will, namely, in accordance with Torah and Mitzvoth (obeying His commandments).

As we move through life, and as we move closer to the imminent Redemption with Moshiach, lessons learned from the movers are very timely.