By Josh Hoffman

The Parashat Behar, like a lot of Parashot in the book of Leviticus, is about laws and rules. On the top of Mount Sinai, Adonai is commanding Moshe to tell the Israelites to observe the sabbatical year. Every seventh year, the land was commanded to rest and lay fallow after six years of work and farming. This sabbatical year, a year in which there is no labor, is referred to as shemittah which translates “to let go” or “to withdraw”. Furthermore, any naturally occurring produce during the shemittah could be taken freely by any human or animal and all outstanding debts were cancelled in this year as well. Sounds socialist to me.

The parashot that seem the hardest to comment on are the ones that don’t tell a story. These parashot have no characters to draw comparison from, no decisions to contemplate, and no imagery to engross us. At a first glance, parashat Behar seemed liked it was going to be a challenge to write about. I thought back to me at Bar Mitzvah age and wondered what I would conjure up as my dvar torah if this was my parashah. Lucky for me, I am no longer thirteen and I think my years of building up knowledge and wisdom has helped me have a more insightful view on this parashah.

First thing that helped me find meaning in this parashah was simple arithmetic. Something, I learned early in my schooling. The sabbatical year takes place 1/7 of the time or about 14.3 % of the time. When I thought about time in my life when I felt I was letting go and withdrawing myself from the stress and worries of life, I naturally thought of Machaneh. It is our own little sabbatical. It is both a place and time to keep ourselves mentally healthy by preoccupying ourselves physically and emotionally. Machaneh Moshava, my home, runs 7 weeks and adding on construction and decon that is about 9 weeks out of the year. So 9/52 or 17.3 % of the year is spent at Machaneh as a Tzevet member.

Our time of rejuvenation at machaneh is a little bit larger percentage of our year than the sabbatical is in a lifetime but yet it feels very short. When we are stressing about exams or sitting at home doing nothing, we feel like Machaneh is very far away. Once we start the summer it seems like in a blink of an eye it is gone. However, just like how Adonai promised the Israelites that they would be rewarded with 3 years’ worth of exemplary harvest for following the sabbatical year. We are rewarded for our time spent at Machaneh. There is no denying that it can be challenging and hard work to be on Tzevet but the positive vibes and loving environment are omnipresent at Machaneh. People care and appreciate one another. We work to understand and accept each other. These feelings don’t just stop when we leave Machaneh. They stay with us and keep us feeling positive and energized throughout the year. So next time, when you are feeling anxious or down, remember machaneh is only one positive thought away.