Quenching A Thirst
This week’s parasha is Hayyei Sarah, which begins with
Sarah’s death at the age of 127. After finding a proper burial site for his
wife, Abraham begins the task of finding a wife for Isaac. Chapter 24 covers
this and I choose to offer my interpretations on it. Abraham sends his senior servant
off to find an eligible woman. The servant was to bring a camel to the well and
ask for a sip of water from a maiden. The maiden that offered up water to the
camel in addition to the servant was to be selected. The woman who met that
qualification was Rebekah, Abraham’s grandniece. Laban, Rebekah’s brother,
agreed to the engagement, as it was decreed by the L-rd. Rebekah followed
Abraham’s servant back from Nahor and was taken as Isaac’s wife.
I found the
selection process for Isaac’s spouse so profound. She was literally quenching a
thirst. Isaac had just lost his mother and needed a woman’s caring heart back
in his life. He also had to be fruitful and multiply to carry on the covenant
made by Hashem with his father. We should all be blessed to find a partner that
satiates our need for love, togetherness, knowledge, but most importantly
shares our beliefs, religiously. I also found the use of the camel interesting.
Camels are probably your best travel option in a desert. This is because they
store up on water. When the camel was offered water by Rebekah, it drank even
though it may not have needed it. We can learn from that. We should be the same
way with Torah. We may think we are learning enough, making all the right
decisions, etc, but there is no such thing as too much Torah. Be like that
camel and always take the opportunity to take in more nutrition for your soul.
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