Different Speeds of Time

John Denver once sang that he spent a week in Toledo, Ohio, one day. And, of course, everyone knows the corollary: time flies when we're having fun. Depending on what we're doing, where we are, and with whom we're doing it, our sense of time can vary dramatically.

As we come to the conclusion of the Book of Numbers in our weekly Torah reading cycle, we can see a similar phenomenon at work.

The Book of Numbers—which is called Bemidbar, "In the Wilderness," in Hebrew—tells the story of the Israelites' forty years of wandering in the desert. There are 36 chapters in the book.  So, you might assume that each chapter covers roughly a year, but that's not how it plays out.

Numbers 1:1–10:10 describes the census, the arrangement of the camp, and the Israelites' preparations to depart from Sinai. According to many scholars, all of this takes just 19 days. Numbers 10:11–21:35 recounts the Israelites' rebellions, the episode of the twelve spies, and LOTS of wandering.

These chapters span more than 38 years.

Finally, Numbers 22–36 covers the encounters with Moab, the second census, the division of the land among the tribes, and the final preparations for entering Canaan. According to scholars, these chapters describe the last five months in the wilderness.

It seems that those first 19 days and those final five months were packed with activity—so much so that time must have seemed to fly by. The middle 38-plus years, on the other hand, probably felt like watching paint dry.

But that's often how life works. As Ecclesiastes reminds us, "For everything there is a season, and a time for every purpose under heaven." Sometimes we have to trudge through the ordinary to arrive at the extraordinary. I suspect most of our kids feel that way about the school year compared to summer vacation.

After a year of classes, homework, and studying, I hope they're all enjoying a well-earned summer adventure.

The synagogue calendar has its seasons, too.  Things slow down a bit during the summer, but that doesn't mean we're standing still. In fact, these quieter months give us the opportunity to plan for the year ahead. We have lots of exciting ideas in the works—the kind of plans that will make the coming year seem to fly by.

So, we'd still love to see you over the summer—for Shabbat, Community Night, Tisha B'Av, Mah Jongg, and everything else that keeps our community connected. But if you're off on your own summer adventure, enjoy every minute of it. We'll be excited to welcome you back in the fall.