This past weekend we celebrated my nephew's bris in New Jersey. The plan was to turn around and drive back to Cleveland right after Shabbos ends (by 7:00 PM). Plus, the clock was changing in our favor, so we could be back home by 1:00 AM and still get a half-decent night's sleep.
"Man plans and G-d laughs." We didn't leave NJ until 9:30, there was snow halfway through Pennsylvania, AND while paying a toll in PA the toll collector hands us a "detour slip." The turnpike was closed. So, at around 1:00 AM, we veered off of the turnpike and followed a small county road ("Rt. 30") for about 25 miles.
We ended up arriving home after 5:00 AM, "new time!"
However, something happened along Route 30 that moved me. As we approached the small town of Shankville, PA, I saw a sign "Flight 93 Memorial ahead." Then I saw the large Flight 93 Memorial entrance. Shankville was the rural town in which the ill-fated hijacked flight, heading towards the White House on 9/11, nose-dived into a farm, killing all 40 passengers aboard. For some reason, I had always been fascinated by the story of that tragic Flight 93. The fact that the hijacking took place over Cleveland, the dramatic story of the passengers storming the cabin and struggling with the terrorists, and the big mystery as to what happened in the 8 minutes before impact, after the 911 call came in from the plane...
I'm still not sure why our trip had to experience so many delays, but seeing the Flight 93 Memorial (something that I had wanted to see) was a subtle reminder to me that wherever life's twists and turns take us, it's all part of a divine Master Plan.
This week was the yahrtzeit (anniversary of the passing) of our matriarch Rachel ("Rochel Immenu".) Tens of thousands of Jews in Israel flocked to her final resting place to pray and commemorate this day.
The fascinating fact is that Rachel was not buried where she was "supposed to be" buried, in Chevron, in the Tomb of the Machpelah, next to her beloved husband, Jacob. Instead, she was buried at "the side of road," prompting many (including his own family members) to question Jacob's decision in doing so. This remained a big question mark for a long time. However, many years later, this question was answered.
As the Jews were being exiled out of Israel by the Babylonians, it seemed like they'd never return to their homeland, and that the Jews would never survive the ordeal. However, because Rachel was buried "at the side of the road," the exiled Jews "ended up" passing by her tomb, and were able to pray at her graveside, draw inspiration, and receive a prophetic divine promise that in the merit of Rachel's self-sacrifice towards her sister (a different story altogether) the Jews would "come back home!"
There is a blessing that we recite each morning: "Blessed are you G-d, who prepares the footsteps of man." It's all part of a divine Master Plan, wherever we may roam!
Shabbat Shalom,
Rabbi Koval
