“He called Eisav his older son” (Bereishis 27:1)

The Torah calls Eisav the “older son” to indicate his special firstborn status. However in actuality how much time was there between Eisav’s birth and Yaakov’s? A split second as the Torah states “His hand was holding onto Eisav’s heel.” Yet that small advantage caused Eisav to be crowned with the title of “firstborn ” and to receive all the privileges of the bechorah. How important is a moment of life! (Rav Chaim Ephraim Zaitchik Mayanei HaChaim)

People say that when one is busy time flies. In that case I am constantly airborne.

Mornings are tsunamis and I can barely keep my head above water. By the time I come home from work I’m sure that the waves of the morning’s turbulence must have subsided but they’ve neither diminished nor been forgotten. The afternoon is lost in a flurry of errands homework laundry phone calls and — oops: evening has arrived and the storm has escalated into a massive tidal wave. Things calm down at night but there is no time to enjoy the tranquility. The sailors are lying unconscious in their beds recovering their strength for the next day’s maelstrom.

The days fly go by. And suddenly the seasons shift and still the frenzied pace continues.

Throughout it all I struggle to seize a single moment. To bestow significance and meaning on sixty seconds packed within the tempo of life so that I feel like I have changed grown in the process of time.

We see this further in the pasuk that states “Yaakov had just left the presence of his father Yitzchak and Eisav his brother was coming.” The Torah is teaching us the miracles that were performed for Yaakov for if Eisav had arrived one moment earlier Yaakov would not have been blessed.

If Yaakov Avinu had delayed going for even one more moment if he had continued arguing with his mother by refusing to accept her dangerous suggestion of fooling his father that would have been enough for him to lose the brachos.

It was a moment that determined the future…. (ibid.)

Truthfully I’ve had such a moment.

Once when I was davening on an ordinary weekday a light suddenly touched me and flooded my heart. It was as if a locked door within me magically opened. I can’t even attempt to describe the joy closeness and love that poured through that entranceway. Suddenly there were tears not tears of pain but tears of longing and yearning tears born of an incredible closeness to Hashem. There were no words no desire to speak. I wanted only to remain in that incredible profound place where I had such a powerful sensation of Hashem’s Presence. All I wished was for more moments such as this one.

The Sefer Chassidim states: If a person is davening and suddenly experiences the joy of loving Hashem it is because Hashem wants to fulfill his requests. As it states: “Delight in Hashem and He will give you your heart’s desire” (Tehillim 37:4).

If one feels this joy during Shema Koleinu or before Yihyu l’ratzon imrei fi he should make the following request: “May it be Your will that this love should forever remain bound and implanted in my heart and the hearts of all of my children.” He should ask only for Hashem’s love and good will.

If one experiences this joy at any time during the day or night when he is not engaged in prayer he should not speak with any person while his heart is still joyful and his soul is rejoicing in Hashem. (ibid.)

If you experience such a moment when all the lights of your soul are illuminated and you sense your hand is within His — seize it! Breathe it in until the very last vestige is gone. Feel the excitement until it is over.

And daven! Ask for Hashem’s closeness forever. Pray that your family be able to cling to Hashem. Seize that moment and blessed generations will emerge from it.

Sometimes there is a moment on which the entire future depends. If only a person knew of that moment if only he was aware of when it arrived — he would not hesitate or delay. (ibid.)

If your days are filled and overflowing that’s wonderful! If your hands are full and always at work that’s fulfillment! But don’t let the moment pass you by. Wait for it longingly and when it comes — for it will come — seize it. It may be only a fleeting moment but all of eternity is contained within it.

The afternoon is lost in a flurry of errands homework laundry phone calls and — oops: evening has arrived and the storm has escalated into a massive tidal wave