This week, the confluence of two things caused me to have a realization, although not a concrete one. This was not a moment that led to me having a big scientific discovery or a massive chiddush on some perek of Tanach, rather, it was a moment that led to me to understand a feeling. A sense that I think has always been present within me, and I believe is always resonating throughout the story of our people.

This past Shabbat was Shabbat Nachamu, with the famous haftorah for the week after Tisha B’Av from Isaiah 40. The haftorah begins with the words “נַֽחֲמ֥וּ נַֽחֲמ֖וּ עַמִּ֑י – Console, console my people.” It is a heavy burden to bear; we are not only being told to feel comforted and protected, but to also comfort and protect others. God, Isaiah, and the Jewish people are being asked to be a comforting presence after the terrible thing that they experienced, and that we are asked to remember. After commemorating our saddest day on the Jewish calendar, mourning the temple and the holiness that we lost, we are then........

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