The Finder of Lost Things

Elul is here. Can we find what we have lost?

In my house I am the finder of lost things. Where did my husband put his keys? Where did my daughter leave her favorite shirt? Where is the middle schooler’s book? Where did the preschooler put his shoes?

The shoes, by the way, are an every-single-morning predicament. And if anyone wants to know, they are under the couch. They are literally, always, under the couch. The other items take a bit more work to locate. And I hate to admit it, but the messier the house is, the harder all of the mystery items are to find. But somehow, every day I manage to make magic happen. More often than not, I’m able to find what is lost. I am the finder of the lost things.

Being the finder of the things, I have learned, is an essential and eternal line on the parenting resume. (Case in point: When we go to visit with my parents, I am the one who can’t find her shoes.)

I revel in this role when I turn to this week’s parasha. As it says,

(א) לֹֽא־תִרְאֶה֩ אֶת־שׁ֨וֹר אָחִ֜יךָ א֤וֹ אֶת־שֵׂיוֹ֙ נִדָּחִ֔ים וְהִתְעַלַּמְתָּ֖ מֵהֶ֑ם הָשֵׁ֥ב תְּשִׁיבֵ֖ם לְאָחִֽיךָ׃ (ב) וְאִם־לֹ֨א קָר֥וֹב אָחִ֛יךָ אֵלֶ֖יךָ וְלֹ֣א יְדַעְתּ֑וֹ וַאֲסַפְתּוֹ֙ אֶל־תּ֣וֹךְ בֵּיתֶ֔ךָ וְהָיָ֣ה עִמְּךָ֗ עַ֣ד…