A Very Good Bad Day | Rabbi Zev Smith

Someone asked me, Why is life like a yo-yo? You have those good days and the bad days. Why don't we have a consistency in our lives? I told him: You know what your mistake is? You don't know the definition of a good day or a bad day is. The pasuk says in Bereishis, after every day of creation, והנה טוב except the sixth day, it says טוב מאוד. What is the significance of the sixth day that it’s not just good, it's טוב מאוד? So the Medrash explains, On the sixth day, Yetzer Hara was created, and that's טוב מאוד. Isn't that shocking? The Yetzer Hara, the arch-enemy of us, Yidden, is not just good, but quintessential good? But what's more perplexing, the Gemara says in Masechta Sukkah, On that awesome day, when the Ribono shel Olam will finally slaughter the Yetzer Hara, Tzaddikim will cry. Why are we crying when we finally got rid of this arch-enemy? And I believe the message is because we don't understand the value of a day of a struggle. We don't understand how the Ribono shel Olam cherishes and values our difficulties. Yetzer Hara is an opportunity to transform a bad day into a day of טוב מאוד. Because Chazal tell us that טוב אחד בצער ממאה ברווח. What we do when it's easy is valuable, but when we do something when it's impossible is 100 times more valuable. Says the מהרש”א, That's why Tzaddikim will cry when Moshiach comes. We lost the opportunity of טוב מאוד. We lost those precious opportunities of rising to the occasion and being victorious over the Yetzer Hara. And this is what I told my friend, When you’re zoche to have a good day, it’s a gift, that’s טוב, but when you have a day that goes from bad to worse, that’s an opportunity to transform bad into טוב מאוד. And one day, you’re going to say, If only I had those days, those opportunities, because they don’t last forever. If there's one concept that we have to live our lives with, it's this concept. There are good days, but there are better days. To cherish every struggle and not to feel that worthlessness. Look at me, I have a Yetzer Hara, I have a temptation. As if there's something wrong with me. No, it's a time that we have to roar like a lion and say, I will create another Vayimaen moment. Because that's טוב מאוד, that's quintessential טוב. I remember when I was in Yeshiva, the best mark on the report card was ט”מ, that stood for טוב מאוד. My dear friends, we have to mark ourselves every day and let's be proud to say, This is a day of טוב מאוד, that once again, I transformed bad into ultimate good. But take my advice, Enjoy it while it lasts.