Sukkot : The Happiness WorkShack
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Sukkot : The Happiness WorkShack
The hardest Mitzvah in the Torah, according to the Vilna Gaon, is to be happy non-stop, 24/7, on Sukkot holiday. Sukkot is that time of year when we move out of our cozy homes into a little booth, eat outside like we’re on a camping trip on our porch or backyard, and try to pretend we’re having the time of our lives. But there’s something deeper going on in our Sukkah Shack. Sukkot is the festival of happiness—z’man simchateinu, and our honored guests, the Ushpizin, each bring a special lesson to help us tap into joy, how to be happy, non-stop.
Day One, Avraham Avinu: True happiness comes from giving. Take advantage of me, that is what I am here for. Avraham was the ultimate host, welcoming everyone, even when they probably just showed up to eat and run. Even when the guy doesn’t RSVP, and shows up with seven kids and a cousin. True happiness comes from letting go of controlling people and embracing the uncontrollable. So go ahead and invite that friend who always asks for second helpings, because the more you give, the happier you will be. How does this make any sense? You know the story:
There was a man living in a tiny apartment in Bayit Vagan in Jerusalem, packed to the brim with kids. His wife had been asking him to move somewhere bigger for years, but you know how Jerusalem real estate is… So, he goes to his rabbi for advice. “Rabbi,” he says, “my wife says we need to move, we’re living in a shoebox. The place is too tight, there is too much noise. There’s barely room to turn around, and when one of my 10 kids put on spray deodorant, the other 9 kids all duck!”
The rabbi thinks for a moment and says, “Here’s what you’re going to do. Go home, and put a Roomba, (smart vacuum cleaner, the kind that drives around the house like a maniac) in your living room.” The man is confused. “A Roomba? We’re already tripping over each other in there. Isn’t that going to make it more chaotic?” “Trust me,” says the rabbi with a smile.
So, he goes home, plugs in the Roomba, and within minutes, it’s ping-ponging around the apartment, chasing and scaring the kids…, zipping around, bumping into chairs…, making surprise attacks on their feet, and getting tangled in cords. His wife was tripping over it. Every time they tried to walk across the room, it seemed like the Roomba was lurking, ready to strike.
Frustrated, he went back to the rabbi. “Rabbi, this isn’t working, the Roomba just made it worse. Now, it’s like we’re living in a bumper car ride! That Roomba is more like a robotic attack dog than a vacuum! Rabbi, my wife is about to lose it!””
“Good. Now, go home and get a smart fridge. One with an interactive screen.”
The man scratched his head but did as he was told. He was very close to this Rabbi. Soon, they had a shiny new smart fridge in the kitchen. It came with all the bells and whistles—an interactive screen, an app that kept track of grocery lists, and even a camera that showed them the contents inside without opening the door. But already on its first night, it started to misbehave. His smart fridge kept sending him passive-aggressive messages like, “Are you really eating that at 3 AM?” In the morning, it wasn’t any better. Not only did the smart fridge always ping the family with grocery reminders, every time he reached for a snack, the fridge lectured him about his calorie intake and sent alerts to his phone about expiring hummus. Every time they wanted a snack, it took five minutes to figure out how to navigate the touchscreen.
The man went back to the rabbi, shaking his head. “Rabbi, this fridge is taking over our kitchen! It keeps pinging with notifications, telling me the milk is low, and reveals to my wife who opened the fridge door at 3 AM!”
“Add a virtual assistant with a voice control system,” the rabbi advised.
So, the man introduced a digital assistant named “Chaya” into their home. It was always listening, often at the worst times, and it seemed to activate whenever anyone spoke—even in their sleep. Soon, they were arguing with Chaya more than with each other. “Please just let me sleep, Chaya!” became the nightly mantra.
When he couldn’t stand it anymore, the man returned to the rabbi, looking haggard and disheveled. The rabbi strokes his beard, smiles, and says, “Now, my son, here’s the solution: unplug everything. Take everything out—the robot, the fridge, and even Chaya.” The man did as he was told, and instantly, a calmness descended upon the house. The wife looked around and marveled, “Wow, it’s so spacious and quiet in here! I guess the house isn’t so small after all. I love our cozy home.”
True happiness isn’t about space; it’s about making room in your heart. There is power in perspective and there is serenity in unplugging. Sometimes, you just need a little Sukkot reminder that what you have is more than enough, and that less is often more. When we give, we realize how much we have.
Day Two, Yitzhak Avinu: Finding joy in the moment, serenity in the silence. Yitzchak represents introspection and quiet strength. Yitzhak did not talk much, and not because he did not have what to say. Rather, it was because he knew the value of a silent moment, and mastered the science of acquiescing. In the world of endless WhatsApp messages and non-stop group chats, try putting the phone away for ten minutes. If that’s too much, start with ten seconds. Let the future you, the you you wish to be, win the present you, the you that has become the product of your habits and your past.
Happiness is sometimes just finding a break in the noise. Silence is the secret to becoming stronger than your passions and impulses. Yitzhak is the Patriarch that teaches us that discipline and restraint ironically can be the happiest thing, as Yitzhak’s name means laughter. Because happiness sometimes means knowing when to hold back, for something greater than the fleeting moment.
Day Three, Yaakov Avinu: The joy of the journey, even when you’re lost. Yaakov was always on the move, fleeing Esav, working for his trickster father-in-law, wrestling angels, dealing with the trauma of his daughter Dina’s defilement, and Yosef being eaten by a wild animal. But no matter what the struggle of life was, he embraced it. He didn’t always know where he’d end up, but he found purpose in the journey. Life’s happiness isn’t in reaching a destination but in the detours along the way. Embrace the joy of getting lost, knowing that G-d is your GPS.
Yaakov was also the master of balance. Balancing twelve kids, four wives, a difficult father in law and a flock of sheep, all while learning Torah. The key to happiness, is to balance everything, while noticing all the good.
Day Four, Moshe Rabbenu: Happiness can be found in leadership, but the secret to leadership is to keep calm and carry on. Moshe dealt with a lot—a most difficult Pharoh, splitting the sea, dealing with complaints about the manna, and leading a people who preferred a golden calve, and to question G-d’s strength and support, then to believe, that G-d has them covered. The secret to happiness and leadership is humility, which Rashi teaches us is spelled P A T I E N C E. Accept that life is going to have its setbacks, and that even if you have to break the first Tablets, G-d can forgive, and give you a second set. Happiness is knowing that sometimes, to lead is to suffer. And if you don’t have critics, you are probably not leading anyone.
Happiness in leading others, is dependent on mastering the freedom of letting go. After leading the people through the desert for 40 years, you find out you can’t even enter the Land. Happiness is found in the peace that comes along with letting go what you can’t change.
Day Five, Aharon Hakohen: Happiness is making peace, even when you are right. Even when people were in the wrong, he’d find a way to make shalom. Choose peace over being right, to just smile and agree. Happiness often means letting someone else have the last word. Focus on unity, smile through the chaos, and quietly move the conversation away from divisive topics.
Day Six, Yosef Hatzadik: Joy of resilience and keeping a good attitude. Yosef knew about struggles—sold by his brothers, thrown in a pit, wrongfully imprisoned. And yet, he kept a positive perspective. Happiness is all about perspective. If Yosef can find joy after years of drama, you can remind yourself to take some drama in stride as well. Yosef faced ups and downs, from favorite son to slave to prisoner to second-in-command. He went through it all with resilience and grace.
How did Yosef keep with resilience throughout? Yosef had a knack for seeing potential and good. He was the Master of Dreams, dreaming of good, even in the darkest of times. Even in the pit. Even in a dream of Pharoah. Even in years of famine. Look for potential in every situation and you will find it, hiding somewhere.
Day Seven, David Hamelech: David teaches us faith—both in Hashem and in the process. He dreamed of building the Beit HaMikdash but had to leave the project to his son. He taught us to do what you do, and don’t care who is watching or what they are saying. Whether it is how you dance with the Torah, or when you do Teshuva over something wrong you did. It is just you, and G-d, and nobody else matters. You always have G-d to talk to, He is the only One who can understand you, anyway. Whatever you go through in life, turn it into a song, to G-d.
