Opportunity Lost

It is awful when one realises that certain avenues are irretrievably lost. Mishna Avot tells us :


(ואל תאמר לכשאפנה אשנה שמא לא תפנה (אבות פרק ב משנה ד
DO not say 'When I have time, I will study (Torah)" ...Maybe you will never find the time!

In other words, important things must be done when the opportunity arises. If one waits for a convenient moment, it may never come, or the window may simply close.

I feel this sense of regret in connection with the passing of Rav Shagar. He was a thinker who intrigued me. I did not always understand what he said but I was keen to learn with him. I said to myself on more than one occasion that I should attend his shiurim in Yeshivat Siach (in Efrat) ... only a 10 minute drive from my home. I thought that I would get a great deal from spending some time in his shiurim. However, unfortunately I never acted upon those thoughts! I never did attend a weekly shiur with Rav Shagar. And now it is too late. The lesson?

- Carpe Diem!