Elul: The Thrill of Victory and the Agony of Defeat

Elul is a time of introspection, a time when things long forgotten are remembered. As the month progresses and we approach the new year, I remembered something that I saw on television many years ago. I even found it on YouTube:



A very special verse comes to mind: "He that is slow to anger is better than the mighty; and he that ruleth his spirit than he that taketh a city" (Proverbs 16:32).

It is interesting that King Solomon saw a similarity between spiritual and physical valor. Someone who is able to overcome his evil inclination is truly a hero. Our Rabbis saw this as being the utmost degree of heroism (Avot 4:1).

Who is not familiar with the "thrill of victory"? Almost everyone has seen the celebrations after a baseball team wins the World Series or a soccer team wins the World Cup. The thrill of victory in the spiritual realm is a bit different. A person doesn't open bottles of champagne every time he beats the Yetzer HaRa. It is a totally different feeling, a delicate inner happiness where one feels that he has improved himself, improved the world and has come closer to God. This is the ultimate victory.

And then there is the "agony of defeat". Here I think we get a little bit closer to the world of sport. You feel like a boxer that has just been knocked down on his back. You look up and you see the Yetzer HaRa standing over you, smiling. You wonder how you got into this fight. Didn't you know who was going to win? How did the Yetzer HaRa fool you, little by little, to enter into the ring. You are ashamed of yourself for falling for the same tricks, for letting emotion and desire rule over reason.

As the year heads towards its conclusion we examine our victories and defeats. We look to strengthen the good deeds, and to distance ourselves from the not so good ones. We regret our errors, confess them before God, and take upon ourselves not to be fooled again by the Yetzer.

May we merit to feel the thrill of victory, and may we be spared the agony of defeat!

Israeli Baseball League?

I wonder if this is going to catch on:

The Israel Baseball League has signed up former New York Yankee manager Ron Blomberg to manage one of the six teams to take the field June 24, when the league starts its first season. No games will be played on the Sabbath.

It also has taken on 45-year-old pitcher Ari Alexenberg, who grew up in an orthodox Jewish family that later moved to Israel. He remained in the United States but recently tried out for the Israeli teams in Petach Tikva, where his parents live.

Turns out that this CBS already reported this on February 12:

Former Major League Baseball players Ken Holtzman, Ron Blomberg and Art Shamsky were hired Monday as managers for the first season of the Israel Baseball League.

Six teams will play in the league, which opens June 24. Each club will play 45 games over eight weeks, with no games Friday nights or Saturday afternoons because of the Sabbath.

Former Red Sox general manager Dan Duquette is the league's director of baseball operations and Daniel Kurtzer, a former U.S. ambassador to Israel, is its commissioner. The league plans to announce cities later this month, spokesman Marty Appel said.

Holtzman went 174-150 and is the winningest Jewish pitcher in MLB history. Blomberg was the first designated hitter in MLB and Shamsky played for the 1969 New York Mets World Series championship team.

The name Ron Blomberg certainly bring back memories of my youth when I was a Yankee fan. Today my free time is much too dear to me to waste on spectator sports. However I admire the fact that the league is respecting the sanctity of the Sabbath. I wonder if they will sing the national anthem before the game.

Update: Ha'aretz has an interesting article about the tryouts for the IBL which were held last November.

Update: For those interested, the IBL has a web site. (Hat tip: Soccer Dad)