Yesterday I was in Brookline and I stopped to pick up a beautiful maple leaf to observe it's beauty. As I looked at the leaf, I was amazed to see how much detail and richness there could be within one simple leaf. The sun rays shone through the trees on to this beautiful leaf and made its colors shine even brighter.
I was reminded that what I am seeing was simply a miniscule reflection of the innate beauty and potential that is in abundance in the world around us,
I am also reminded of another leaf that we read about in this week's Torah portion, as we read how Noah sent a dove from the Ark as the waters receded to see if it could find anything, A short while later the dove returns carrying a single fresh leaf from an Olive tree which meant life was growing once again.
It was at this moment that Noah realized that the flood was over and it was time to begin to rebuild the world. The leaf brought by the dove carried with it a powerful message of hope, potential for life and perhaps the power of endurance.
Olive trees are famous for living for many centuries and continuing to produce olives. Often when I am in Israel I stop to marvel at old olive trees that look like they have witnessed so much history unfold before them, and wonder what these ancient trunks have seen and heard happen.
A simple leaf was the opening of a new era of humanity in which man was to learn to live by a higher set of values. To Noah this leaf represented the potential of life, fruit and potential even after a terrible flood in which so much was destroyed.
As we enjoy the dazzling colors of Fall in New England which are an array of billions of beautiful leaves and trees, we can remind ourselves that this stunning beauty and sea of rich colors, is actually made up of many individual leaves. Each leaf has it's own unique colors and life that they give off to the world and thereby help make our world so beautiful, but it is as they stand together that their beauty is amplified and becomes so powerful.
A single leaf can hold so much life, color and potential and remind us of G-d, the beauty of the universe and so much more. How much more so, if we stop to think about the human leaves that make up our world and reflect on the unique beauty that G-d invested and each and every individual, so that together, we can make the world be the beautiful place it is supposed to be.
Enjoy the amazing colors of Fall and enjoy the rich colors of humanity!
Shabbat Shalom / Good Shabbos
Yisroel