It’s difficult to understand Hashem’s ways, especially when it comes to large-scale calamities like the coronavirus pandemic. But although we may not know what Hashem is communicating to us, we should perhaps reflect on the following:
Maybe we’ve become too focused on the outside and not enough on the inside. Maybe we needed time away from some of the external influences that we’ve allowed to slowly seep into our lives, our homes, and our children. Maybe Hashem is giving us an opportunity to shelter our kids from the troubled society around us, to readjust our priorities, to show them what Jewish families and values are really about.
Maybe we are being reminded that while shul is the center of communal practice, the epicenter of life is the home. (Even strong communities start at home.)
Maybe we haven’t been infusing our homes with enough holiness. Maybe He wanted us to temporarily take our davening, learning, and chesed home – to daven with our children, learn with them, direct our chesed toward them. Show them by example. “This is how Abba or Ima does it; let’s do it together.”
Maybe He knew that we live in such a fast-paced world that in trying to keep up, we’ve kind of lost track. Maybe He wanted us to slow down just a bit.
Maybe He knows how hectic mornings and evenings and carpools and lunches can be with a large Jewish family (baruch Hashem). Maybe He wanted us home to spend just a little more quality time (or a lot more time!) with our spouses and children. “Couldn’t make it home for dinner, homework, bath time, or bedtime?” He said, “Here you go. Less work, no traffic, no minyan or chavrusa to run to, no social events to attend. Be home.”
Maybe we overextended ourselves for others to the point that we forgot that family always comes first. Chesed and hachnasas orchim are very important, but maybe we’ve made our kids and spouses feel a little neglected in the process. Maybe we needed some “social distancing” – not from valuable mitzvos but from only fulfilling them with non-family members. When again will we have an intimate Pesach Seder only with family and accomplish “vehigadeta lebincha” with our children getting our undivided attention – and we theirs?
Maybe we’ve begun to feel that we can place the burden of chinuch on others to make up for our lack of patience or time. Maybe He’s asking us to be more proactive in educating our children. That, in the end, as important as schools are, it’s our responsibility to ensure that our children develop the middos and thirst for lifelong learning they need to succeed.
Maybe Hashem is giving us the opportunity to show our children that even in scary times Abba and Ima are there for them. To help them feel a sense of safety and security, that everything is going to be okay. Maybe Hashem wants them to see bitachon on our faces, radiating strength and calmness even in stressful times. Maybe this is our chance to leave an indelible impression on our children that can change their emotional and spiritual wellbeing forever.
We may not understand Hashem’s ways, but we know tthere are always hidden reasons behind His actions, and there is always a bigger picture that extends far beyond our finite comprehension. Just look at Pesach – how our grueling slavery resulted in the birth of the Jewish nation, bringing the eternal Torah down to earth and thereby transforming the world forever.
While we continue to mourn the illness and tragic loss of life from this terrible plague, and continue to pray for the refuah of all those affected, we must not overlook Hashem’s important messages. Because one day, soon G-d willing, this too shall pass. It will be behind us and our lives will go back to “normal.”
And if we fail to utilize this time to strengthen ourselves and our families, we will perhaps have missed a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.