Making Time For Study

From historian David McCullough: “Once upon a time in the dead of winter in the Dakota Territory, Theodore Roosevelt took off in a makeshift boat down the Little Missouri River in pursuit of a couple of thieves who had stolen his prized rowboat. After several days on the river, he caught up and got the draw on them with his trusty Winchester, at which point they surrendered. Then Roosevelt set off in a borrowed wagon to haul the thieves cross-country to justice. They headed across the snow-covered wastes of the Badlands to the railhead at Dickinson, and Roosevelt walked the whole way, the entire 40 miles. It was an astonishing feat, what might be called a defining moment in Roosevelt’s eventful life. But what makes it especially memorable is that during that time, he managed to read all of ‘Anna Karenina.’ I often think of that when I hear people say they haven’t time to read.”

A man once approached Rabbi Yisroel Salanter and said, “I have 15 minutes a day to study. Shall I study Torah or mussar? “Mussar,” answered Salanter, referring to the study of moral conduct. “Why?” asked the man. “Because then you will realize you have more than 15 minutes a day to study.”

Rabbi David Wolpe is spiritual leader of Sinai Temple in Los Angeles. Follow his teachings at www.facebook.com/RabbiWolpe.