Posted on 03/10/23
One of my favorite morning breakfast cereals is the well-known Life Cereal made by Quaker Oats. It has the perfect flavor, texture, and crunch. However, there is one aspect of the Life Cereal consumption experience that is both overwhelming and potentially anxiety inducing. That is, Life Cereal – in its ideal state of crunchiness – has a lifespan of approximately 8.5 seconds before it turns into a soggy nightmare of mush. By the time you pour in the milk, you are dealing with literally seconds until the amazing cereal turns practically inedible. To eat Life Cereal properly, you have to be mentally ready and physically prepared (sitting upright, head near the bowl, and spoon in hand) to make the most of each precious moment before the Life Cereal becomes sloppy.
Maybe, just maybe, we can learn a fantastically true lesson about real life from Life Cereal, namely, the importance of taking advantage of the moment, living in the present, and realizing that time is of the greatest essence, so make the most of it.
Did you know that the English word “Life” comes from the German word “Leib,” which literally means body. But it could be, interestingly enough, that it is also related to the Hebrew word “lev,” which means a heart. The connection between life and heart is obvious, as it is the most important part of the human body, the part of us that keeps us pumping and alive.
So, whether we are discussing Life Cereal or life in general, we need to realize that time is truly of the essence, and perhaps more accurately, time is of our very essence. What we do with our precious time defines who we are.
Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks zt”l once said:
“Time management is more than management and larger than time. It is about life itself… However rich we are, there are still only twenty-four hours in a day, seven days in a week, and a span of years that, however long, is still all too short. Whoever we are, whatever we do… the single most important fact about our life, on which all else depends, is how we spend our time.” (Judaism’s Life-Changing Ideas p. 169)
In Parshas Ki Sisa, the Torah records the grave sin that the Jewish people committed soon after the giving of the Torah; the construction of the Eigel Hazahav, the Golden Calf. And what caused them to do this? A mistreatment of…time. They miscalculated the time for when Moshe Rabbeinu was supposed to come down the mountain and the rest is history. They acted rashly and immaturely and the Golden Calf was born. But of all things, it started from a misuse of time.
Life is all about making the most of our days and valuing the precious time that we have on this world to grow, connect, achieve, and become the greatest people that we can possibly be.
Have a holy Shabbos!