Rabbi Elchanan Wasserman zt”l, the Baranovitcher Rosh Yeshiva, had a friend who had learned with him in yeshiva, went into business and became very wealthy.
One day, the friend came to visit Reb Elchanan. After conversing for a few minutes the friend turned to Reb Elchanan and said, “Look how successful I have become and how comfortably I live. We both know that you have far greater capabilities than I do and are much smarter than I am. If you would enter the business world, you would surely become far more successful than I am. You would have the ability to support your family without worry and you wouldn’t be badgered by incessant financial strains. Isn’t that better than living in poverty as you do now?” Reb Elchanan shrugged and skirted the issue as the conversation turned to other topics.
When it was time for the friend to leave, Reb Elchanan escorted him to the train station where there were two platforms so two trains could arrive at the same time. One of the approaching trains was relatively new, with comfortable plush seats and added legroom. The second train on the other platform was heading in the opposite direction. It was far older and the seats were not as comfortable. It was the train the friend was going to take.
As Reb Elchanan stood next to his friend he said, “I don’t understand. The train you are waiting for is decrepit and dilapidated. The one pulling in on the other track is nicer and more comfortable. It is not befitting for a wealthy person like you to ride on such an outdated train. You really should walk to the other track and wait for the nicer train.”
The friend laughed and replied, “Surely you realize that the nicer train is going in the opposite direction of my home.” Reb Elchanan was persistent, “So what? I still feel that it is unbecoming for a person of your stature to ride such a train.” The friend looked at Reb Elchanan incredulously, “Why are you talking such nonsense? What sense would it make for me to have a comfortable ride if it would be taking me in the wrong direction? Should I be comfortable for a few minutes if afterwards I am going to be extremely far from where I need to be?”
Reb Elchanan poignantly replied, “Listen to what you are saying! The main focus is not on the ride but on the direction in which you are heading. You asked me why I don’t leave yeshiva and enter the business world. Riches and wealth may allow me to enjoy the ride so that I will be able to provide for my family comfortably. But I am worried where I will end up. When the ride is over, will I have reached my destination or will I find that I have traveled in the wrong direction completely?”
Forty years passed and Klal Yisroel were camped just a few days’ march from Eretz Yisroel. The Torah reviews the forty-two places where the young burgeoning nation had journeyed.
Parshas Masei begins (33:1-2), “These are the journeys of the Children of Israel, who went forth from the land of Egypt according to their legions…Moshe wrote (motza’ayhem l’ma’asayhem) their findings according to their journeys at the bidding of Hashem, and these were (masa’ayhem l’motza’ayhem) their journeys according to their findings.”
The commentators are puzzled. The verse begins by announcing that the following are “Their findings according to their journeys” but concludes, “These were their journeys according to their findings.” Why the reversal and why does the Torah refer to their travels as findings?