"Rrrring..."

The recess bell had barely completed its ring and the fifth grade boys were already pouring out of the classroom.

"C'mon Benzi, move it!" Velvel urged his friend. "We want to continue the game."

Rabbi Abrams, the boys' teacher, was collecting some sheets from his desk. "Velvel," he called gently, "let me share an idea from the parshah with you while you are waiting for Benzi to finish copying the homework questions from the board."

Velvel walked up to the front of the classroom respectfully. Rabbi Abrams was a really good teacher and he always had interesting things to say. He was nice, too. "He'll probably give us a couple extra of minutes for recess if he keeps us in now," Velvel thought as he saw that a group of boys had returned to the classroom to wait for Benzi. The game wouldn't start without him because, slow as he was at writing, he was the fastest on the baseball field.

"There must be a nicer way of letting someone know you want them to hurry rather than telling them to 'move it!' " Rabbi Abrams said with a smile. "But since the words have already been said, you boys might be interested in knowing that this is a mitzvah in this week's parshah."

Velvel and his classmates looked at their teacher questioningly. Rabbi Abrams was pleased at their interest and continued.

"The Torah says, 'And you shall walk in His ways.' The Rambam counts this commandment as one of the 613 mitzvos. He explains that the way we fulfill this mitzvah is by following in HaShem's footsteps and doing as He does. Just as HaShem is kind, so should we act kindly. Just as He is merciful, so should we be caring."

"But, Rabbi Abrams," Velvel asked, "don't we already have mitzvos that command us to be good and kind? I thought the idea of counting each and every mitzvah was to show how each one is a separate mitzvah of its own."

"Good question, Velvel. I'm glad that you're thinking about learning even though you've got the recess game on your mind! Since the Rambam counts it separately, this mitzvah must be a specific commandment on its own. This mitzvah teaches us an important lesson about how a Jew should live. The Torah says, 'And you shall walk...' A Jew is commanded to always be on the move. Every mitzvah that we do should move us forward in the direction in which we are supposed to be heading. As we follow in the path of HaShem and fulfill His commandments, we should feel that we are changing and becoming better people. We can and should always keep going, for no matter how far we have reached, we can always advance even further."

(Adapted from Likkutei Sichos, Vol. IV, p. 1130)