A race. What is it? For me, it is probably the “race of life,” the pursuit of success. I would like to keep life and success and take away the “race,” because I love to work and, as my mother used to say, “if a person loves to work, it is a sign of a healthy body and a healthy spirit.”
But all around us we see a chase, a pursuit of a better life. How can we achieve a measure of peace of mind while still continuing to earn a living? I will share with you how, in the “race for a million,” we can feel that we are not losing our quality of life. Perhaps we will not earn that million, but we will feel good, with G-d’s help.
In the weekly Torah portion of Bereishit (2:5), it is written: “and there was no man to till the soil.” No one cultivated the soil until the Almighty created man. Once man was created, he prayed—and rain fell, and all the plants sprouted.
But our Sages offer an interpretation completely different from the previous one: “and man (became as though he were) not (there), working the land.” In other words, a person works so much that it is as though he no longer exists. He has worn himself out; he is exhausted. He belongs entirely to his work.
Some people work to the point of complete exhaustion, “from sunrise until the soul departs.” They take on several jobs. Where is quality of life supposed to come from? There is neither food nor sleep! And what about the family? People do not talk to each other! He comes home when she is already leaving; she returns when he is going out. And the home? The children live on microwaves and frozen food!
Of course, it is wonderful that nowadays we have freezers, microwave ovens, and all sorts of helpful electrical appliances. And yet… A person must still “recalculate the route,” consider whether he has become too absorbed in chasing secondary things, leaving what matters most in life behind.
Our Sages say that when a person makes himself into “ayin” (he does not exist; he nullifies himself) in relation to work, there is no blessing in the money he earns. In other words, even if he earns 2000 more, he may lose it: the washing machine will break down, the apartment will need urgent repairs, a filling will fall out of a tooth…
It turns out that the amount of money earned is not a measure in itself. It must carry a blessing, or it will slip through one’s fingers.
The Chafetz Chaim tells a parable about this. Suppose there is a barrel full of water, with four taps fitted into it. One day, the owner of the barrel said: “I want to have more water,” and fitted a fifth tap into the barrel. Will he have more water? Hardly, because the same amount remains in the barrel. He can simply turn on one more tap. Whatever is allotted to a person is what he will have, no more and no less.
But perhaps, then, we do not need to do anything at all? Perhaps I can sit back with my legs crossed all month, and at the end, everything due to me will rain down on me from heaven? Alas, no! We must make an effort to earn a living. Without effort, there will be nothing, because, as a rule, we are not on the level of receiving everything through an open miracle. We are all subject to the curse of the first man: by the sweat of your brow you shall eat bread!
It is written in our holy books: who is a “perceptive person (pikeach)”? One who “distances himself from (mekapeach)” his earnings. When a person thinks he has calculated and thought everything through, that if he works even more hours he will earn even more money, that is precisely where he is mistaken. The sum allotted to him for the month will not change; he will simply expend more energy.
I would like to conclude with what is written in Chovot Halevavot: it is better for a person to work in a field he enjoys, and in this way he will have a much greater blessing. Often, people not only work very long hours, but also in a workplace that does not suit them and completely drains them emotionally. There will be no blessing in their earnings there, even if a larger amount appears on their pay slip. By contrast, if there are good relationships at work, pleasant people, and the work itself is enjoyable, a person feels “in the right place”—there will be blessing in his earnings here.
Speaking about this, Rav Kanievsky said that one earns more money through prayer and repentance rather than by increasing one’s working hours. Perhaps we should put our relationships with other people and with the Almighty in order, and then He will send us greater sustenance, for everything comes from Him.
And then, even if we do not earn millions, we will enjoy a better quality of life with what we do earn—a calmer, more pleasant life. We will not take part in the “race for a million”; instead, we will live with blessing, with our families, enjoying life.