By Hyphen Parent | FāVS News Columnist
And Rabbi Yoḥanan said in the name of Rabbi Shimon ben Yoḥai: From the day the Holy One, Blessed be He, created the world, no one thanked the Holy One, Blessed be He, until Leah came and thanked Him, as it is stated: “And she became pregnant and gave birth to a son, and she said, ‘This time I will give thanks to G-d,’ and thus he was called Judah” (Genesis 29:35).
The Torah parsha Vayetzei (Genesis 28:10–32:3) is a parsha my family knows well because it was my son’s bar mitzvah parsha seven years ago. Vayetzei means, “And he left.” It brings us from Jacob’s journey, to his ladder dream, through his marriages and children, to his and his family’s journey together where Jacob is met by angels.
Vayetzei typically falls around Thanksgiving. This year is no different. The reading in 2025 falls on Nov. 29, the first shabbat after Thanksgiving. It’s perfectly placed in the American calendar because it contains the first time we see someone say, “Thank you,” to G-d. After the birth of her and Jacob’s fourth son Yehuda, Jacob’s wife Leah thanks G-d. The name Yehudah means “Thanksgiving” or “Praise.”
For my son’s bar mitzvah speech, one of the lessons he featured from the parsha was, “Thank you,” to G-d and others. This is a lesson I tried to teach the children year-round, but especially on and around Thanksgiving.
Just before Thanksgiving each year, from the time my children were very small, I’d ask them to focus on someone they were thankful for and send them a letter or card expressing that. Over the years, the kids sent their gratitude to anyone from famous authors and actors to their cousin.
I have to admit that I did wonder if a British author might be baffled to receive a “Thank you” card that featured a turkey made from tracing a small child’s hand.
Expressing gratitude out loud
Most of my children are grown up now, and half of them are out of the house. So now it’s something I try to do myself. Sometimes I find solace in taking the time to create fancy cards to send. Sometimes it’s difficult to find even a few spare minutes to do anything, so I send a text instead.
Recently, I thought of a friend I’d been meaning to reach out to, but life kept getting in the way. So I stopped what I was doing and sent a text right then and there to let them know I love them, I appreciate them and I miss them. That helped us reconnect again, and I’m so glad that we did.
Leah thanked G-d out loud. She didn’t just think fondly of him. She went through the effort to express it. That’s an important lesson we need to learn. Not only do we need to recognize gratitude, but we need to make sure we express it.
This Thanksgiving, maybe we can all take a few minutes to recognize those we’re thankful for and tell them that. If you feel so compelled, there’s nothing stopping you from tracing your own palm, decorating it and saying, “Thank you,” with a hand turkey.
The views expressed in this opinion column are those of the author. They do not necessarily reflect the views of FāVS News. FāVS News values diverse perspectives and thoughtful analysis on matters of faith and spirituality.
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