I Don't Like Sundays - Vayishlach

I don’t like Sundays. I stopped liking them a few years ago, probably around when I started working. Sundays sound relaxing, but a lot of the time there is no structure, no routine, and nothing pushing me from one thing to the next. During the week I am running nonstop, so I do not really notice what is going on inside. Sundays take that away. Once the noise shuts off, the thoughts that were hiding in the background get louder, and I do not always love what shows up. People talk about Sundays as a day for family and rest, which is true, but the lack of structure sometimes gets in the way.

In this week’s parsha there is a moment that lines up with that feeling. The Torah says that Yaakov was suddenly alone at night with no one around him. Rashi explains that he ended up alone because he went back for small items he had forgotten, which left him isolated. The Torah then describes that once he was alone, a man came and wrestled with him. Chazal explain that this man was the malach of Esav, which means Yaakov suddenly had to face things he had been avoiding his whole life. The quiet did not create the struggle. It only revealed what was already there.

Maybe Sundays feel uncomfortable because they work the same way. When nothing is pulling you forward, there is nowhere to hide from what has been sitting inside all week. Instead of running to fill the silence, maybe the healthier move is to notice what the silence is trying to show you. There is usually something meaningful underneath it.

This Sunday, can you join me. Let’s take one moment and not race to fill it. Whatever rises up, whether it is a thought, a worry, an idea, or a feeling, look at it honestly. It might be the very thing you have needed to think about this whole time.

Good Shabbos

All the best

Avroham Y Ross