Tragedy is not something you can just forget about and get on with life. This is something that must change the course of life, or it will be forever sending life in circles.
Tragedy is an implosion of negative energy, draining away all warmth and light, sucking the spirit out of our lives like a monstrous leech. And yet, we have the power to grab that energy by the reins and turn it around into a power for good–a greater good than any positive energy could have provided.
How do we do that? Certainly not by stewing over our remorse and guilt. Neither by attempting to keep it stuffed under our pillows.
Really, nothing is without meaning. We believe in one benevolent G d who directs all of heaven and earth. If so, we also believe that every event of life is meant to propel us forward. G d does not allow tragedy in His world just for the heck of it. Everything must have meaning, only that the meaning can only be known from the final result. That final result is in our hands. Our Rabbi’s tell us that when a Tragedy takes place (G-d forbid) it is in fact one of the hardest and most difficult time in any person life, and most importantly our Rabbi’s tell us that Hasham our G d will always give much strength to anyone who G-d Forbid has to deal with such horrible situation.
Furthermore our Rabbi’s tell us that the best therapy to help people who are involved in a Tragic Situation and are in a Tragic State of mind is a soothing voice, a warm heart, a word of encouragement, a dose of optimism. Most of all, they need an open ear into which to pour the bitterness of their souls and a shoulder upon which to cry. We will then be able with G-d’s Help channel the horror and guilt and eventually all the bitterness will slowly just disappear.
We mourn death because we cherish life. That is why we place a limit to the days of mourning–seven days of intense mourning and one month more of remembering, and then life continues, yet higher. We don’t destroy life by mourning the past. We learn from death to count our days as one counts jewels. That is when we will ask, “What did I do with the life G d gave me?
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By Rabbi Tzvi Freeman