He is baby, hear him RAR!

Hi baby. Welcome to the outside.

I call you baby because I don’t know your name – you are still fresh and have that new baby smell, or so they tell me. You are very far away, but I saw you through the technological marvel of video-chatting. You didn’t chat much. That’s OK.

I want to tell you about a guy you will never get the chance to meet – your great grandfather. He was niftar exactly 2 months ago. I have my reasons; I was a fan of his and today, your birthday, is a day with is an ultimate testament to his memory. Your great grandafather, Richard (Yitzchak Aharon ben Eliyahu Chayim, ZT”L) was a great man for many reasons, but which one really resonates with today? Well, for that, let’s talk about today, you little prickly pear.

Today, on the calendar that should have an important place in your identity, is the 20th of Av. (It also happens to be the first of August which is important for other reasons – you can ask your mom and Spiderman about that.) The 20th of Av is listed in the Mishna in Masechet Ta’anit, 26a as one of the nine dates on which people made a contribution of wood to the temple – as sefaria.org writes, “These were private holidays specific to certain families, on which their members would volunteer a wood offering for the altar.”

זמן עצי כהנים והעם תשעה באחד בניסן בני ארח בן יהודה בעשרים בתמוז בני דוד בן יהודה בחמשה באב בני פרעוש בן יהודה בשבעה בו בני יונדב בן רכב בעשרה בו בני סנאה בן בנימן בחמשה עשר בו בני זתוא בן … בעשרים בו בני פחת מואב בן יהודה

There were nine such days and families: On the first of Nisan, the descendants of Araḥ ben Yehuda; on the twentieth of Tammuz, the descendants of David ben Yehuda; on the fifth of Av, the descendants of Parosh ben Yehuda; on the seventh of Av, the descendants of Jonadab ben Rechab; on the tenth of Av, the descendants of Sena’a ben Binyamin; on the fifteenth of Av, the descendants of Zattu ben Yehuda… On the twentieth of Av, the descendants of Paḥat Moav ben Yehuda;

This isn’t about trees. It isn’t always about trees. When you are three and they cut your hair, then it can be about trees. This is not about trees.

These nine days signify an act of selflessness – giving of what you have not because you must, but because it is what is needed. These days are about stepping up and making tzeddakah a priority. I can cut and paste better than I can write this up [ http://www.sie.org/templates/sie/article_cdo/aid/2508069/jewish/Shabbos-Parshas-Eikev-Chof-Menachem-Av-5747-1987.htm ]:
…the donation of the 20th of Av showed a greater measure of ahavas Yisrael and Jewish unity than the other days. The reason for this: The Gemara relates that after the 15th of Av, the rays of the summer sun are weaker and no new trees were felled to be used for the altar as they would not be dry enough. (Taanis 31a)


According to this, the family which donated wood on the 20th of Av had to take the wood from their existing stock of fire-wood — they gave away their own wood for they could not hew any new wood for the altar. They donated their wood so that other Jews, poor Jews, even past sinners (Heaven forefend) would be able to offer their sacrifices on the altar. Furthermore, it was done in a joyous manner, since they set the day as a holiday. How great was their ahavas Yisrael!


Clearly this wood donation also shows the importance of the mitzvah of tzedakah — since the wood is donated for anyone who cannot afford his own wood. And as this wood is given to the wood warehouse it assumes the highest state of tzedakah for the “giver knows not to whom he gives and the mendicant knows not from whom he receives.” (Rambam, Laws of Gifts to the Poor 10:8)


If you want a good sense of who your great grandfather was, read that section again (what? You can’t read yet? I’ll wait) and pay special attention to this line (and I’m changing the number in the pronouns…let’s not quibble) “[he] donated [his] wood so that other Jews, poor Jews, even past sinners (Heaven forefend) would be able to offer their sacrifices on the altar. Furthermore, it was done in a joyous manner, since [he] set the day as a holiday. How great was [his] ahavas Yisrael!” Just replace the words “wood” with “everything” and “offer their sacrifices” with “have better lives”. The rest stays the same.

A side note – 9 days. Ahavat Yisrael. Dedication to the center of religious life. When you start studying you will learn about another day which has just passed – the 9th of Av. It is the culmination of a period of mourning for a national tragedy, the loss of that same spiritual and religious center. A loss caused, in part of a sin’at yisrael, a hatred of one’s fellow man. These 9 days of donation to the mishkan, maybe, in a sense, they can help make up for the 9 days which mark our religious loss. Maybe these expressions of love and giving, culminating in the most intense expression of love can (as it were) atone for the nine days which culminate in the consequences of our inability to show love to one another. Maybe, your being insprired by and acting like your Sababa-saba can help lead all of klal Yisrael into an era of mutual respect, caring and giving!

What you have, and you have a lot, is yours because others have given to you, starting with life. Hashem, your parents, your family, your friends, your nation, all have become partners in your existence. It takes a village and we’re all overjoyed to have the chance to be that village. Today IS a holiday – a commemoration of the joy of giving to others, of the new opportunities to provide to a new link in a chain what he needs to thrive and continue being a giver, not just a taker. Today is a tribute to tzeddakah, charity. Celebrate that and celebrate the life and giving, loving spirit of Yitzchak Aharon, Z”TL, by being that person with that spirit of love and selflessness, every day and all the time.