In this week's Torah portion, Vayigash, we approach the denouement of the whole Joseph narrative. After living in Egypt for many years and becoming the right hand to Pharaoh, Joseph finally reveals his identity to his brothers, who have come down from Canaan in search of food during a wide-scale famine. This is an emotional tale, filled with weeping and embracing, complicated family dynamics, and resurfaced memories. Ultimately, it's a happy ending. The family comes back together in love. Jacob's spirit is restored upon being reunited with the beloved son that he thought was dead. They all settle in the fertile Egyptian land of Goshen to prosper as shepherds.
This parasha made me think about how many people are reuniting with their families this week. Hopefully, over this winter brea,k you are spending some time with people that you love. I will be traveling to my grandparents' house to celebrate my grandpa's 92nd birthday. Hopefully, your reunions are less fraught and not after such long separations as in our Torah story!
My grandparents still live on their dairy farm in central New York. When I was a kid, my sister, cousins, and I would play in the cornfields, help take care of the cows, and swim in the creek. It was very special to be able to have these experiences. My sister had her own cows and showed them at the county fair. We played with the kittens in the haymow. One of the best parts about having access to a farm is the free cat pipeline. My cat, Spot, came right out of the barn!
So much of my memory of spending time with my grandparents is tied up in the place. Their house still looks almost the same as it did when I was a kid. They still have the same crewel-work embroidery on the walls and the same rag rug in the living room. But they've replaced the floor in the kitchen and the roof on the barn and the garage. There are no more horses or cows in the barns. My grandma doesn't make pies or lasagna like she used to. They are still themselves, but they have slowed down. People and places change, even if we want them to stay the same. Even the banks of the creek have changed, and they had to move the staircase that leads down to the water.
I see my grandparents a few times a year, in the familiar place, so the changes are slow and incremental. I think of Joseph greeting his family in Egypt and how much they have all changed and grown in the time they have spent apart. Joseph is unrecognizable when they see him. He has become part of the Egyptian society, speaking to his brothers through a translator. He was their dreamy little brother, and now he is a powerful man. Their father, Jacob, has grown old.
When we see our families, it helps us to ask how we have changed and also how we have stayed the same. When we approach each other in the old familiar places, we feel that our love and connection help bind us together through all the years and miles that we spend apart. In this cold winter time, may we all find some warmth in the people that we love and our shared memories.