Liat Granot – Year 10

Parahsat Tetsaveh

Tetsaveh tells of a fascinating garment worn by the Kohen Gadol (High Priest). The Kohen Gadol wore a breastplate that was decorated with twelve unique and precious stones. The stones represented the 12 Tribes, and each stone had the name of one of the Tribes carved into it.

This beautiful breastplate served a deep spiritual purpose. It was said that whenever the High Priest was asked a question that he could not answer, or was faced with a situation that he could not resolve, he would pose the question to his breastplate, and he would receive the answer to the problem though the letters carved on the stones.

The Kohen Gadol was among the wisest of all men, but even he wasn’t expected to be able to solve every problem he faced. Despite his important position, he knew that it was okay to ask for help whenever he didn’t have a solution. When we are faced with a situation or problem that we don’t know the answers to, the Torah is telling us that it is more than ok to ask for help. This doesn’t even have to be how to fix the problem – it could simply be a nudge in the right direction.

Let’s look at something that almost all of us need help with – homework. For me specifically, Maths homework. It was a dark and stormy night. I was in Year 7 (a dark time for all…) and once again, I was struggling to figure out what ‘x’ was. I was scared. What if I never figured out what ‘x’ was? What if I would just sit here forever and wonder what ‘x’ was? When I’m older and have kids, will they ask me what ‘x’ is and I wouldn’t know? With the benefit of hindsight, I know that if I had just asked my dad or even Googled it I would have saved myself so much time and effort.

But what makes someone not ask? I think it is simply fear. Fear of what others might think, fear that we still won’t understand, fear that we might not like the answer. And of course some of this is just human nature. But what if we just let go of all the fear in our lives. I know this sounds crazy but give it a try – maybe in one aspect of your life where you feel that you could use a little more knowledge. Ask more questions in class, ask that cute guy or girl out for a movie, ask your parents for just five more dollars. Well maybe not the last one – I will have no fatalities stemming from this devar torah! What I’m trying to say here is that if the Kohen Gadol, the wisest among men, can ask someone for help, then you can too.