Parashat Vayikra
Most moments in life don’t feel meaningful when they happen.
They feel ordinary. Incidental. Easy to dismiss.
A conversation. An opportunity. A challenge. A small decision that doesn’t seem like it matters very much.
It’s only later that we sometimes realize how much was actually at stake.
The opening word of this week’s parsha is Vayikra — “And He called.”
But in the Torah scroll, the final letter — the aleph — is written small.
Without it, the word would read Vayikar — “it happened,” “a coincidence.”
The difference between a calling and a coincidence is almost invisible.
The Torah is hinting at something subtle but powerful:
Not everything in life arrives with clarity. Not every moment announces itself as important. Much of life shows up quietly — and can easily be experienced as random.
The difference between a calling and a coincidence is almost invisible — but it changes everything.
The question is not only what happens to us.
It’s how we relate to what happens.
Two people can live through the same moment.
One brushes it off. The other pauses, pays attention, and asks: What is being asked of me here?
That shift — from seeing life as a series of coincidences to experiencing it as a series of calls — changes everything.
It shapes how we respond.
How we grow.
And ultimately, the kind of life we build.
As Shabbat approaches, may we slow down enough to notice the moments that matter — and find the clarity to respond to them with intention.
