I just finished reading Eicha. I initially joined eicha reading with my shul via Zoom. Our shul reads from a claf. The feed died out during the third perek. I said the rest on my own.
Artscroll translates the word as 'Alas' but what does it really mean. The most meaningful answer I have heard was that it asks the question 'How could it be?' How did we get to this point. Eicha are the words, I said over and over again as I cried myself to sleep the night my Gabi died.
Here I am again, the word Eicha has an extra sharpness to it this year. Our whole world has been turned upside down. We spent months in lockdown, waiting for the danger to pass over us, hoping and praying would leave us unharmed. I sat and watch other countries around the world that chose to ignore the danger, as they suffered the consequences of their actions. There was a certain level of unity in our nation as we all adjusted to life during a very upside down time. And it came to pass that the danger was going away and we could begin to return to the world we once knew.
The Government promised to move slowly to make sure that the coast was clear. Something went wrong. Our unity was broken. All of a sudden the Government said lets start allowing A, B and C and see what happens. People got angry. People protested. How could A be allowed and E not allowed. So things started moving faster and faster. Suddenly most things were open. People were being somewhat respectful of the rules but more than not they weren't. The danger was still going away. How could everything else be open but not the schools. So they opened the schools and the 2nd wave began. As predicted the 2nd wave is much worse than the first one.
The Book of Abraham by Marek Halter was published in 1986. It is the story of a family of scribes who pass on their family history from generation to generation. The story begins with the destruction of the Beit HaMikdash and the struggle of a world turned upside down. What was it like living in the shock of the Beit HaMikdash being overturned. Eicha. What do we do now? Where do we go?
In the mishna Nazir, we are confronted with a very sad case. A bunch of people took the oath of Nazir on a temporary basis. They go to Yerushalyim to bring the sacrifices that allow them to finish their Nazir cycle. They arrive, only to discover that the Beit HaMikdash is gone. In some scenarios they may be able to have their Nazir status nullified. In others they are left in a status of nazir for their entire life. All because they could never have contemplated such a terrible tragedy could prevent them from completing the Nazir process.
In the year 2020, the world is upside down. Eicha. How did this happen? More importantly, how do we go forward?
In the passed month or two I have allowed frustration to periodically allow my morale to drop. I am frustrated with those who are constantly downplaying what seems so clear to me. There is a threat and we need to take appropriate steps to keep not only ourselves, but everyone else safe. I am frustrated with people who are being careless about following rules designed to protect our health and safety. I am tired of the conspiracy theories about how the threat is just a hoax.
There is one thing I have learned from those times that the words Eicha has cried out as a whole in my heart. After we are finished with the pain and the tears, there is one question we must ask. Where do we go from here? How do we heal? What is next?
Eicha gives us the answer.
הֲשִׁיבֵנוּ יְהוָה אֵלֶיךָ וְנָשׁוּבָה, חַדֵּשׁ יָמֵינוּ כְּקֶדֶם.
Bring us back to You Hashem and we shall return, renew our days as of old.
No matter how bad things get. We can make them better. We can guide our world to a time when everything will be normal again, even if that normal is not what we thought the plan was going to be.
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