Sometimes I Dread Shabbos - Vayakhel–Pekudei

This past Shabbos, my son woke me up at midnight, and I could not fall back asleep, so I spent the next few hours just thinking. Normally, at that hour, I would grab my phone and end up doomscrolling without even noticing how much time passed. Instead, the forced quiet gave my mind room to wander and process things that usually get pushed aside during the week. Somewhere in those quiet hours, I realized something I usually would not say out loud.

Sometimes I dread Shabbos. Last Friday afternoon, as Shabbos was coming in, I caught myself wishing the clocks would pause and skip the weekend. My wife and I joked that if Shabbos did not exist, it would basically be two Sundays in a row, and I hate Sundays. During the week, I am constantly building things, working on projects, planning, and moving forward. Then suddenly everything stops. No phone. No computer. No writing. Just quiet. When you are used to constantly doing, stopping can feel harder than working, and that tension might actually be exactly what the Torah in this week's parsha is addressing.

In this week’s parsha, Vayakhel–Pekudei, the Torah reminds the Jewish people about Shabbos before describing the construction of the Mishkan. The Jewish people were inspired and ready to build something sacred, and still the Torah stops them first and says that for six days you may work, but the seventh day is Shabbos. Even the building of the Mishkan does not override Shabbos. The Mishkan represents humanity at its most productive and inspired, and still the Torah insists that even holy productivity must stop.

I feel that Shabbos might actually be more necessary for people who struggle to slow down than for people who naturally enjoy it. The world pushes us to constantly produce, create, and move, and Shabbos interrupts that rhythm and reminds us that our value is not only measured by what we accomplish. So yes, sometimes Shabbos still feels uncomfortable for me, and sometimes I feel the urge to grab my phone or go back to whatever project is sitting in my mind. But that tension might actually be part of the experience itself. Learning to sit with the quiet is its own kind of work.

Maybe Shabbos is Hashem’s built-in protection against burnout, a time to slow down, be present, and be with family without distractions. A day where nothing needs to be produced, optimized, or accomplished. This week, instead of simply waiting for Shabbos to end, let’s try something different. Let’s plan one thing we genuinely look forward to and experience it with a full heart and simcha.

Good Shabbos

All the best

Avroham Yehudah Ross