Our Gemara on Amud Aleph employs a proverb, stating, "If you try to grab too much, you will not grasp anything. If you grasp a measured amount, you will succeed in retaining it."

This principle holds significant weight in human development and behavior. The inclination to undertake vast projects in a sweeping manner, especially during times of impatience and frustration with moral sentiments, is a common occurrence. However, drastic changes often prove unsustainable.

Understanding the inherent and essential qualities of the human personality is also crucial. Much of our actions and thoughts occur on autopilot. Our thought patterns and even our spoken words often emerge without our conscious awareness. This phenomenon is a necessity given the overwhelming amount of information to process. Consider the contrast between an adult reader and a child who is still reading phonetically. The adult reader doesn't consciously register each individual letter or word; this is why proofreading remains challenging, and even prestigious newspapers or magazines occasionally contain glaring mistakes. Similarly, our personalities are shaped by years of experience, entrenching patterns of thought and emotion. This ingrained behavior is essential for human survival. If personalities could change as swiftly as clothing, we'd be lost in terms of our actions, behaviors, and expectations. Therefore, if we aim to modify our thoughts, feelings, or actions, we must acknowledge that change isn't an instantaneous update. Instead, we must engage in mindful, deliberate living and gradually develop new patterns. This process requires open curiosity and self-awareness, not abrupt, impulsive, or self-critical reactions.

Enduring change emerges from respecting the human developmental process and progressing one step at a time.

Translations Courtesy of Sefaria, except when, sometimes, I disagree with the translation

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