The travel
industry is one sector of the economy that is booming. And it has boomed consistently over recent
years. This, despite the general meltdown
that the global economy has experienced. And it’s not hard to figure out why this has
been so. Travel, especially mass travel
is simply a good value compared to many other things, on which we spend our money. And travel gives us a way to ‘escape’ so to
speak, to get a needed time-out from our busy lives.
Contempt for mass travel comes easily
to many critics. It’s impersonal. It’s hit-or-miss regarding quality of accommodation. And food.
And just about every other aspect.
It causes people to travel in a ‘bubble’ where they end up experiencing
little of the places they’ve visited. The
criticism certainly rings true. To an
extent, it makes mass travel sound a lot like, well, a lot like life!
Despite the very real criticisms of
mass travel, many of us like to travel that way. It’s a way to enjoy a higher standard of accommodation,
and food, and overall experience, for the same price or cheaper than going on
our own. And it’s much more carefree;
others get to worry about the driving, and the guiding, and the decisions as to
where to stop and where to stay and eat.
So as with anything else in life, there are advantages and disadvantages.
If mass travel in general is booming,
the most booming sector may be the cruise industry. Many of you have been on cruises. Many of you have taken a cruise and, finding
it a most pleasurable way to travel, took another cruise…and perhaps another,
and another! Those who have been on
cruises, especially cruises on particularly good ships and destinations, have
told me in sometime-gushing terms about what a great time you had. My brother and his wife just came back from a
Mediterranean cruise, and believe me I’ve gotten an earful…as well as seen some
of the pictures posted on Facebook!
Clara and I have never been on a
cruise ourselves. It’s not that we don’t
think we would enjoy such a trip. We’ve
simply had other economic priorities in recent years, with children attending
private school and now university. Our
dollars are going in other directions. Someday we’ll go on a cruise. And then we just might get hooked on the
concept…as you have.
This week’s Torah portion is Masa’ei,
meaning ‘journeys.’ It’s the final
weekly portion from the book of Numbers, or Bamidbar. Next week, as usually happens, the month of Av
begins with our opening of the book of Deuteronomy, Devarim. The first words of this week’s portion
are: These are the journeys of the Israelites,
who had left Egypt betzivotam under the leadership of Moses of Aaron. The word, betzivotam is usually
translated, ‘according to their hosts.’
But this week, I found the word translated, ‘in organized groups.’ So perhaps the ancient Israelites were the
first to enjoy the benefits of mass tourism? Can you imagine Moses and Aaron as cruise
directors??!
Of course not. And it would be difficult to draw an analogy
between the 40 years’ wandering, and a cruise.
So I’m not going to try! Except
to say, that just as a cruise passenger today doesn’t have to worry about
navigating strange lands and foraging for what to eat…neither did our ancient
forebears. They had Moses and Aaron to
guide them, and their basic needs were taken care of. Yes, the nation gave up its autonomy to
decide where to spend the night, and where to eat, and when to rest. Just like a motor coach tour or cruise
passenger does. The loss of autonomy,
for the gain of safety and ease, was a valid trade-off.
We’ve all heard the analogy of life to
a journey. You’ve heard it from me,
although I cannot claim to have coined the phrase. But I repeat it because it’s a great metaphor.
If we think of our lives only in terms
of destinations, then we’re in danger of missing the pleasures of the journey. Like spending our vacations worrying about
where we’re going, how we’re going to get there and how we’re going to
experience the destination. Approach
travel like that, and the danger is of missing out on the experience. Of not enjoying the journey.
Enjoying the journey should be the
goal. In terms of a holiday, or in terms
of life. When we worry overly about
whether we’re doing it right, about whether we’re following expectations, about
whether we’ve maximized everything we wanted to get out of it…then we’re
in danger of missing out on the joy that the journey brings. And that’s a significant danger, in the sense
that we only have one chance at life…unless you believe in re-incarnation. Why squander our lives worrying about the
details and pre-expectations? Why
squander our lives, worrying about reaching our goals, to the point where we
don’t allow ourselves to experience, and enjoy the journey?
Going on an organized holiday, in
particular a cruise, is a way to enjoy our time off without having to worry
overly about the details. This is why
cruises are so popular. I fail to see
how I can give my life overall the carefree quality of a cruise. But I can cruise through life much
easier if I don’t sweat the details so much.
If I don’t worry as much about the destination, the goal, as I worry
about simply experiencing it as if comes.
As many of you know, Clara and I have
recently experienced a big shock regarding our expectations as to the course
and destination of our life’s cruise, at least in the short term. I won’t kid you by saying that it hasn’t
mattered…of course it has! And it has
caused us no small amount of worry and concern.
But now, some weeks down the line, we have a much clearer view of the
specific possibilities and how each will come about…or not. And we’ve learned an important lesson about
not worrying so much about the precise destination, rather in experiencing the
highs and even the lows along the way.
Many of you have also learned these
lessons along the way. Maybe your
destination has changed, perhaps more than once, along the way. But that happens on cruises, too. Sometimes that weather causes a change in
course. A friend of mine is booked for a
Mediterranean cruise next month. Thanks
to the fighting in Gaza and the missiles falling all over Israel, the port
visit in Ashdod has been cancelled. Of
course my friend is disappointed. But it
isn’t the end of the world. And if he
accepts that, then I’m guessing he’ll enjoy his cruise. Likewise, when we experience a change in
itinerary, a change of destination in our life’s cruises, it may be the source
of disappointment. But it need not spoil
the experience. The key is to not let
it be so.
Enjoy the journey. Sometimes, enjoying the journey requires
being open to changes in the destination, changes in the itinerary. If so, the challenge is to enjoy even the changed
journey. And any journey in life –
whether it is a holiday cruise or our life’s cruise – is subject to change. So be open.
And enjoy the journey. Shabbat
shalom.
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