Time. One of the most elusive commodities in the world. Time flies; time’s ripe; we can borrow time or kill time.

At this time of year we are all busy counting — surging toward our destiny in receiving the Torah. While pronouncing a countdown from day to day we can reflect upon David HaMelech’s earnest plea in Tehillim (90:12): “Teach us to count our days”  Hashem please show us how we can make them count!

As a child the mitzvah of sefiras haOmer was enhanced by my mother’s beautiful background of Yekkishe Jewry. To her there is nothing more natural and rewarding than an obligation that requires appreciating and recognizing every precious moment that builds the monument of time.

We the modern Jewish women of the “instant everything” world are constantly challenged to properly balance our time. David HaMelech’s plea is therefore especially poignant to our generation:

Teach us please how we can count our days! How do we balance the myriad activities demands and details that are part and parcel of our daily lives? As we sink into our pillows after a long and tiring day can we be sure that we have properly availed ourselves of the time allotted? Can we make an honest accounting for every hour that day accrued?

The prospect is daunting and often engenders defeat before even beginning.

Is Haste Waste?

Chazal teach us that “Kohanim zrizim heim” — the Kohanim possessed the attribute of zrizus — alacrity and zeal; they got things done! I recall learning in third grade about the middah of zrizus. As a child I assumed it meant doing things in a rush. That concept of zrizus allows me to envision a busy Beis HaMikdash of Kohanim bumping into one another spilling droplets of blood as they run — general pandemonium in the sacred sanctuary of the Mikdash! But surely the “Haste makes waste” warnings I heard couldn’t parallel to the ideal of zrizus my teacher was trying to instill.

And presumably pressured rushing shouldn’t be my ideal either. As it is making supper while answering phone calls while sorting laundry comes with its own set of mayhem mishaps. Am I obligated to push the throttle to its highest speed and hope for crash insurance?

Chas v’shalom! Rav Wolbe ztz”l in his classic work Alei Shur states clearly that zrizus is not chaos. Our goal is not to spin to the speed of light until we lose balance and fall. If such was the definition then zrizus would not be considered a middah tovah. What is it then?

Zrizus he explains is not speed in the sense of using a stopwatch to show our prowess or momentum. Rather zrizus is the calculation of the efficiency with which we utilize our time and its opportunities. Zrizus is about maximization regardless of how much time you are actually using.

So how does one maximize time? How can one emulate the alacrity of the Kohanim?

Soaring Freely

Rav Wolbe continues by quoting that Rav Chaim Vital defines the antonym of zrizus as “shiflus” — loosely translated as low self-esteem. When a person does not value his own sense of self he becomes weighted down by emptiness sadness and then inactivity. His actions are governed by a gloomy tone of “Who am I? Who cares? So why bother?” This kind of attitude will manifest itself in falling prey to colossal wastes of time that beckon from our seductive surroundings. Such a weak-spirited person will have minimal output regardless of time allotments.

Rabi Yehudah ben Teima teaches us to observe animals and emulate their strengths. “Be light as an eagle” (Pirkei Avos 5) he encourages us. Surprisingly though the eagle is not a lightweight bird. Rather she is among the heaviest in the sky. Why is she the epitome of a light free spirit?

The eagle has a quality that offsets her heavy body. Her “lightness” is not evident in her poundage but in the wide span of her wings.

How does this parallel our lives? Our lives are also heavy explains Rav Wolbe. They are rife with challenges that seem to weigh us down and foster our feelings of shiflus of despair and defeat. What then are our wings? What offsets the pull of gravity that threatens to keep us earthbound?

Simchah! Simchah is the wingspread that allows us to soar.

The ability of the Kohanim to work with zrizus was due to their quality of simchah. They were empowered to accomplish with zeal because they were aware of the value of their avodah. This gave them the power to conquer time. The Kohanim’s example teaches us the secret to timely accomplishments; it’s the ability to take pride in the value of our daily roles be it wife mother daughter or friend.

It also underscores the essentiality of recognizing that we each have a unique tafkid just as the Kohanim in the Beis HaMikdash did. The simchah that provides the fuel to accomplish includes the ability to recognize our own personal tasks and not to compare with others.

I remember feeling awestruck by a friend who seemed to fit more in her day than I was able to fit into three. She could successfully be a good wife parent teach in five schools make hundreds of shidduchim and host sheva brachos almost every other night. As I got to know her better I discovered the secret of her success — she simply does not need much sleep. This discovery immediately dispelled any envy at her accomplishments. She and I were born different — I know I need my sleep! My tafkid is not hers and my time efficiency must be totaled with my own unique set of circumstances.

Sink or Swim

One of my favorite idioms is the expression “sink or swim.” In essence if I don’t keep moving I will become mired in a vacuum and will have a hard time emerging. What gives me the fuel to swim and then to soar? The simchah in my recognition of my G-dly destiny.

A perfect model of this power of utilizing time was Sarah Schenirer. Her belief in her mission fueled a superhuman ability to forge forward and blaze trails. “Counting days” was one of the credos she was known to use as a daily mantra throughout her lifetime.

Sarah Schenirer did not compare contrast or devalue her unique purpose in life. This too is an attribute we can learn from animals. In the animal world each utilizes its qualities without qualms or complications; there is no weak lion or low-flying eagle. The animals do not have to fight their inner selves as each segment of their characteristics is part and parcel of their nature.

We in contrast battle our internal conflicts. Therefore we entreat Hashem to teach us how to maximize our potential with the proper use of the time allotted to us. As we count toward our own personal Matan Torah let’s focus on the conclusion of David HaMelech’s plea: Teach us how to make our days count

“… v’navi levav chochmah — then we shall acquire a heart of wisdom.” It is only the knowledge of how to value our existence that allows us to utilize our sojourn in This World.