Instant inspiration

You walk into a bakery, and there's a display case, with all the scrumptious looking desserts and pastries they sell. Imediately, two particular delights catch your eye. The first is, the chocolate chip cookies. Soft, and gooey, warm from the oven, they look so good, they make your mouth water. For 5 dollars, you can get a bag full of these goodies. They are easy, on the go, instant pleasure.

The second item is a triple decker, chocolate mousse, creamy creation. It looks so perfect, no one wants to be the first to cut it, to ruin its perfection. This one takes time. You must sit down with it, maybe with a cup of coffee. Eat it slowly, savoring each bite, making it last.

They both look so good. Which one will you choose?

In this day and age, people want things now. They are not willing to wait till later, even if getting it now might mean, compromising on the quality. We live in a world of instant pleasure. Zap a dinner in the microwave, grab a cereal bar on the go. Faster faster, life is so short, there's no time for anything.

If we were able to, we'd tell the teachers, don't prepare lessons anymore. Don't teach it properly, how it should be taught. How about squeezing a semesters worth of lessons into one week? Just shorten everything, stuff it into our brains, so we can have more free time.

A man came to Hillel, the sage, and asked to be taught the whole Torah while standing on one foot. It's not possible. There are great Rabbis who spend their whole life studying Torah, and still haven't learned all of it. When something has quality, you need to take time on it, break it apart, analize it, contemplate it. Otherwise, you ruin it, by trying to learn it in one sitting.

Which is more worth it? Instant inspiration? Cut everything down into one paragraph, one sentence, because I have no time to read a long drasha? Or doing it properly, taking some time out of your busy life, actually learning something, and getting inspired.

You tell me.