A Life That Matters
When a person says that he is making a living, what he means is that he is making an existence. Earning money is merely surviving. No matter how much money a person earns, it does not make his life meaningful.[1] Making a living means making meaningful contributions to the world. How is the world now a better place because of you? How will the world look differently by the time you exit it?
A chassid asked his Rebbe what his thoughts were on the age-old quandary of whether the cup was half empty or half full. The Rebbe said that the answer is obvious — the cup is completely full. It is half full of water and half full of air. People can live without water for a while but it is not possible for a person to live without air for more than a few minutes. People look at their lives and see that it is half empty but that is insignificant compared to how full it is with what matters. The air of life is your contributions to the world, the meaning you add to the world. Will anyone miss you when you leave this world? Why will they miss you? What have you achieved? What significant contributions will you leave behind in this world?
At the funeral of a very successful millionaire named David, the eulogizer, Jay, mentioned the wealthy man’s accomplishments. He praised David’s many great business dealings, the real estate he acquired throughout his life, the immense amount of luxury cars he owned and his brand-name watch collection.[2] Jay suddenly realized that David’s family felt embarrassed. They requested that Jay make the focus on his accomplishments in meaningful arenas such as the charity he gave and the Torah he learned.
Why did those present feel awkward when David’s material achievements were mentioned? The answer is because everyone wants to leave this world being remembered for their meaningful, deeper, spiritual accomplishments. Most people spend the majority of their time chasing physical matters even though they know internally that this is not the legacy they want to leave behind. Who wants to be remembered for their muscles, nice appearance or wealth? We must ask ourselves: “What do you want people to remember about you after you leave this world?” Once we obtain the answer to this, we can dedicate the rest of our days pursuing those things.
[1] A Holocaust survivor once synopsized the contrast of Jewish life in Europe to Jewish life in America where she moved to later in life. “In Europe, no one earned a living but we lived. Here (in America), people earn a living but they don’t live.”
[2] A chassid once asked the Lubavitcher Rebbe his opinion of him choosing to become a typist. The Rebbe retorted, “You can make a living typing, but don’t become a typist.”
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Rabbi Yehoshua Alt
Author of Five Books including the recently released “Magnificent Marriage Insights: Captivating Torah Essays about Marriage”
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