Changing Seasons, Perfect Balance - Sukkot 5787

The Etrog is a unique fruit.  The Torah refers to it as “Pri Etz Hadar” - the splendid fruit.  That is the only description in the written Torah.  The Lulav is described as “Kapot Temarim” - date palm fronds, Hadassim (myrtle) as “Anaf Etz Avot” - a branch of a braided tree, and Aravot as "Arvei Nachal” - willows of the brook.  So how do we get from a splendid fruit to an Etrog?  Maybe a pomegranate is a splendid fruit, or a mango?  Well, I don’t think there were mangos in the Middle East in those days, but there were certainly lots of pomegranates.  

The Talmud explains that the word “Hadar” also means “that dwells,” and the Etrog is the only fruit that dwells on the tree around the year.  Every fruit has a season, and if it is not picked at the end of that season, it falls off the tree.  Summer fruits don;t stay on the tree in winter and vice versa.  An Etrog, on the other hand, can stay on a tree through all the seasons.

The Etrog is also unique among the Four Species themselves.  Each of them has either taste or smell, or neither.  The date has a nice taste but no smell, the myrtle has a wonderful smell but no taste, and the willow has neither.  The Etrog has both a wonderful aroma and a great taste. (Unless it is cut early, as is usually the case with our Etrogim, in which case it is quite sour.  Still it makes a very tasty jam.)  You would expect a perfect fruit to grow in controlled conditions in a temperature controlled greenhouse.  It turns out, however, that Hashem’s recipe for the perfectly balanced fruit is weather,lots of it, with lots of variety.

I saw a wonderful lesson from the Etrog written by Rabbi Avrohom Jacks.  Think of the people you admire most, the ones who make the whole room smell sweeter.  Everyone gravitates toward them and wants to spend time with them.  They radiate goodness and humility - they have great “taste and smell.”  

That person has almost always not had it easy.  They were blown around, again and again, and somewhere along the way they adjusted and became whole.  Because after all, heat builds sweetness.  Rain builds juice.  Change helps us grow.

How is your life going now?  Facing change, instability, fear?  Are things happening around you beyond your control?  The Etrog cannot change the weather, but it can hold on tight to the tree and weather the change.  Hold on to your faith in Hashem, maintain your connection to the Source.  Keep studying and keep doing.  The fluctuations you experience help you evolve and develop.

If you do not have a Four Species set, we have them for sale at Chabad.  See here.  Or feel free to come to Chabad and we will be happy to share one for you to make the bracha and experience the wonderful fragrance, spiritual and physical.  (This year we begin the Four Species ceremony on day 2, because day 1 is Shabbat.)  

I wish you a Chag sameach - a wonderful joyous holiday.  Sukkot is the “Festival of our Joy.  Please join us for the holiday services, meals and celebrations and share the joy with the community.