Parashas Vayetze: Rooted in the Ground, Reaching the Heavens

By Rav Ari Green

8th grade rebbi at Yesodei Yisrael

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In Yaakov’s dream, the Torah describes “סֻלָּם מֻצָּב אַרְצָה וְרֹאשׁוֹ מַגִּיעַ הַשָּׁמָיִמָה” a ladder standing on the ground, and its head reaching the heavens.

Chazal teach that every detail in this vision carries meaning, and for those involved in chinuch, the message is striking.

We naturally notice the ladder’s lofty peak רֹאשׁוֹ מַגִּיעַ הַשָּׁמָיִמָה. Yaakov is being shown what a Jewish life can strive toward: holiness, growth, vision, the highest spiritual heights.

But the Torah emphasizes something else first: מֻצָּב אַרְצָה the ladder must be planted firmly in the ground. For anyone who dreams of teaching, this truth becomes very real very quickly.

Years ago, when I first entered the world of chinuch, I imagined the experience would be made up of soaring moments life-changing classes, students hanging on every word, profound discussions that open hearts and illuminate minds. And, baruch Hashem, there are such moments.

But at the beginning, I found myself surprised even disappointed when so much of my time was taken up with what felt like menial tasks. One memory stands out: standing at breakfast, rationing cereal, making sure everyone got a fair portion. Not exactly the dramatic, heaven-reaching chinuch I had pictured. I once shared this frustration with a colleague, and he offered a perspective that changed everything. He told me:

“Our ladders as mechanchim do reach the heavens. That’s our aspiration to lift neshamos, to bring Torah alive, to inspire. But Hashem designed the ladder so that while its head aims upward, its feet are planted right here, in the everyday, in the small details, in the real lives of real students. If our teaching is going to reach the heavens, it must be rooted firmly in the ground.”

Teaching, he explained, is not measured only by the great shiurim or the inspirational speeches. It’s also and perhaps even more in the small acts of care: noticing a child’s mood, helping organize a binder, calming a conflict, setting up a room, rationing cereal so every child feels provided for.

Those “ground-level” moments are the rungs of the ladder. Without them, the top cannot rise.

Yaakov’s ladder teaches that spiritual heights are only meaningful when they grow from grounded, practical effort.

And so, the message is this:

Every seemingly simple task in chinuch is part of something incomparably higher.

Every act of patience, every detail handled with care, every mundane responsibility done with heart each one is a rung on a ladder that ultimately reaches the heavens.

It turns out the dream wasn’t wrong. The dream was simply incomplete.

We climb toward the heavens by standing firmly on the ground.

Rav Ari Green, born in Memphis and raised in Toronto, made aliyah at age 16. A talented musician and basketball player, he is known for his warmth, energy, and overwhelmingly positive attitude. The Green family currently resides in Ramat Beit Shemesh Aleph.

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