פרשת כי תבוא
ושמחת בכל הטוב אשר נתן לך ה' אלקיך ולביתך אתה והלוי והגר אשר בקרבך | דברים כ"ו, י"א
Then, you shall rejoice with all the good that the Hashem, your Hashem, has granted you and your household you, the Levi, and the stranger who is among you.
Chazal describe the great celebration of bringing bikkurim in a beautiful basket up to Yerushalayim and handing it to the Kohen. People from each city along the way would stop working and joyously play music and dance, celebrating and honoring the people who were bringing the Bikkurim.
HaRav Mordechai Gifter zt”l asks a question: With regard to the Bikkurim, the Torah commands us: "ושמחת בכל הטוב" – “And you shall rejoice with all the goodness.”
Do you really think the Torah has to command us to be joyous? A person bringing Bikkurim couldn’t be happier! Just seeing everyone singing, clapping and dancing, partaking in his simcha… This alone causes him great joy, like a choson and kallah!
The answer says the Telzer Rosh HaYeshiva, is that although he may be very happy – but in his mind, he is thinking, “look at the luscious fruit my friend is bringing next to me! Look in his basket – his fruit is nicer than mine.” At that moment, "לא תחמד" rears its ugly head and his Simcha becomes diminished.
Therefore, the Torah tells him that after he brings his Bikkurim to Yerushalayim, it is important that he is happy! - "ושמחת בכל הטוב" be happy with the good Hashem gave YOU and don’t be jealous of your neighbors.
Later, in the Tochacha, the Torah states that although Bnei Yisroel enjoyed prosperity and all they desired, they didn’t serve Hashem, בשמחה ובטוב לבב" - with happiness. However, the Torah adds two extra words – מרב כל . What does this mean? Eisav said יש לי רב I have much (but I could use more), while Yaakov Avinu answered יש לי כל I have verything I need from Hashem and don’t need more. Bnei Yisroel weren’t happy because they didn’t understand the meaning of מרב כל.
By teaching our Talmidim to be happy with whatever we have, and in particular to model it in our own lives we contribute significantly in developing happy children.
About the Author: Rabbi Yisroel Meir Rubinfeld
Rabbi Rubinfeld has been in the field of Torah education for over 3 decades and serves as an Executive School Consultant for Torah Umesorah. He provides an array of services to schools across North America, including teacher and principal mentorship, school and curricula evaluations, professional development and parent education.
Rabbi Rubinfeld's expertise includes classroom management and discipline, effective instruction, bullying, cultivating sensitivity in the classroom, impulse disorders (such as ADHD and ODD), and balancing the educational needs of mainstream and special needs children in the classroom.
Rabbi Rubinfeld is the also the founder and director of Torah Umesorah's Lilmod U'Lilamed department which provides professional development for teachers and principals throughout the year.
Rabbi Rubinfeld is a talmid of the distinguished Yeshivos of Yeshiva Rabbi Chaim Berlin, the Mirrer Yeshiva in Yerushalayim and Bais Medrash Govoha in Lakewood.