Word Prompt – ETROG – Michael Milgraum

Of the Four Species that we raise on Sukkot, only one is a fruit. The other species that we raise bring benefits to mankind – producing fruit, providing shade, or providing a beautiful aroma. But it is the esrog that is the crowning glory of what a tree could produce – a beautiful fragrant fruit, that brings pleasure to eye, nose and palate.

Furthermore, the esrog and the tree that produces it are unique. For other fruit trees, the fruit tastes good and the tree does not. However, the esrog and its tree taste the same. In fact, in the Torah, the esrog is referred to as "the fruit of the beautiful tree" – the fruit being a beautiful outcome originating from a beautiful source.

Perhaps these thoughts provide us with some inspiration as we go into our season of renewal. May we be able to attain holy ends through holy means. May we find sweetness not only in our accomplishments, but in our striving, indeed, in our struggles, as well. May we know that the reward for doing a mitzvah is not just in some amorphous time in the future, but in the refinement of our souls that arises when we do it.

There is a famous story about a man who asks an angel to show him Olam Haba, paradise. The angel shows him a group of Sages leaning over their Talmuds and learning. The man asks the angel, "So these Sages are in Olam Haba?" The angel responds, "No, Olam Haba is in the Sages." The more holy the work, the more it is true that both the path and the destination are one.