In Parshat Nitzavim, Moshe describes the Torah as something that is “karov eilecha me’od b’ficha u’b’levavcha la’asoto—very close to your mouth and heart, [allowing you] to practice it.” What does the phrase “close to your mouth and heart” mean? In what way is Torah close to the mouth and heart, and how does that combination help a person keep it?
Carl and Ken both knew exactly what their futures held. They grew up in families dedicated to a single profession for generations, and Carl and Ken were expected to continue their traditions. Carl’s family inspected canoes and could trace themselves back to the first-ever canoe inspector, Grizzly Boats, who served Native American canoe-makers in the 1700s. Similarly, Ken’s family members were in the kayak-inspecting business for as long as anyone could remember. Ken’s great-great-grandfather was simply known as King Kayak, and legend has it that his great-grandmother once inspected 212 kayaks in one day.
Knowing this history, nobody was surprised to hear Ken boast about his future in the business. (“King Kayak? Ha! They will call me the Kayak God once my career is done!”) All who knew Ken knew exactly where his career was headed, as did many strangers at the supermarket, children at the park, and students at Ken’s high school.
Carl, on the other hand, never spoke about his future in canoe inspecting; he just didn’t feel the need. With a family so established in the business, Carl thought his family connection spoke for itself. When asked about his future, Carl would just shrug his shoulders as if to say, “I’m not really sure.” He found it funny how people reacted when given such an unexpected response. So Carl never said a thing outwardly, but on the inside he was 100% committed to ensuring safely built canoes for all North American citizens.
Finally, the day came for Carl and Ken to find jobs. Although each was a shoo-in to receive a prominent job, their families wanted them to earn jobs, not to rely on their family connections. Therefore, they still had to go through the process of applying and interviewing like everyone else. On Monday morning Carl headed to the offices of Canoe York to interview for a position, and Ken headed to Kayakkity Yak’s factory to do the same.
Although supremely confident in their career choices, Carl and Ken had unexpected experiences at their interviews. At Ken’s meeting, the interviewer began by asking “Tell me, how does kayak inspecting make you feel? When you look at a perfectly designed and inspected kayak, what do you experience?” Ken was stunned! Feel? Was he supposed to feel something? Ken didn’t know what to say, so he just repeated his usual boast: “King Kayak? Ha! They will call me the Kayak God once my career is done!” Clearly not being the proper response to the question, Ken was mortified and ran from the building in the direction of his home.
On the other side of town, Carl had a similar problem. The interviewer began by asking Carl an even simpler question, just meant to start a conversation. “So Carl, you want to be a canoe inspector, correct?” All Carl had to say was, “Yes, I would like to be a canoe inspector” or simply “yep.” However, Carl couldn’t; his mouth was open, but no sound would come out. The interviewer was concerned. “Carl, are you okay?” Carl nodded. “Sure. Can you ask me that question again?” The interviewer repeated, “So Carl, you want to be a canoe inspector, correct?” Once again, Carl had no words. The interviewer tried another approach. “Carl, you definitely don’t want to be a kayak inspector, correct?” To this question, Carl had a response. “Me? A kayak inspector? No! Me a kayak inspector? No way! Me…a kayak inspector…no way I’D DO ANYTHING ELSE!” Carl ran from the building and in the direction of Kayakkity Yak.
On their respective runs, Carl and Ken (coming from opposite directions) ran around the same corner and right into each other, crashing to the ground. After they dusted themselves off and got to their feet, they started to talk. Ken began by talking about his interview experience, which intrigued Carl (“Weird; that’s where I’m running now!”). Carl then responded with his canoe-inspecting interview story, but stopped mid-way. “Ken, are you okay? Why are you smiling like that.” Ken was giggling. “Canoe inspecting? That sounds marvelous! My heart is fluttering! Bye!”
So began the unexpected start of a successful canoe-inspecting career for Ken and the beginning of a record-breaking career for Carl (“the Kayak God”) in kayak-inspecting.
Sometimes we feel something deeply in our hearts but have trouble following through because it stays there. By talking about our dreams, feelings and beliefs they become “real” and motivate us to follow them. Sometimes we talk about our feelings, beliefs and dreams so much, but that isn’t really what we feel, believe or want. We must find personal connections to turn what we talk about into what we live. This is the secret of the mouth and heart.
By Yair Daar
