Parshat Chaye Sarah; Genesis 23:1 –25:18 by Rabbi Denise L. Eger

Is there really such a thing as love at first sight? In Malcolm Gladwell’s book “Blink” he discusses at great length how many decisions can be made in an instant. For all the comparing of pros and cons, for all the sorting through of risk benefit analysis, his theory is that many decisions can and should be made in the moment, by following our innate human ability to make snap judgments! He contends that really in the space of just about 2 seconds the human brain and sensory input helps us to make important decisions about others or the situation we are in. These are real assessments and Gladwell urges us to pay more attention to our well-honed human ability to sort through complex sets of information that he calls rapid cognition.

With this in mind one could assert that falling in love at first sight is indeed possible! Our torah portion this week alludes exactly to this kind of situation.
Following the death of Sarah, Abraham seeks to find a wife for his son and heir Isaac and sends off his servant Eliezer on such a mission. Eliezer duly deputized by Abraham returns to the land of Abraham’s family to seek a wife for Isaac rather than search among the local pagans.
Once there, Eliezer finds Rebecca, daughter of Nahor, brother of Abraham who kindly welcomes and serves water from the well to the weary traveler Eliezer. Although, Eliezer did not know that Rebecca was related to Abraham. Rebecca not only offers water to Eliezer but also to his camel, displaying the kind of hospitality and concern that our values of Abraham religious convictions.
Only after her kindnesses to him and his animal is the familial relationship revealed. Thus Rebecca would eventually leave her parent’s home and return to the land of Canaan with Eliezer to become Isaac’s bride.
The story continues in Chapter 24 of Genesis that while Isaac was out in the fields praying (according to the Midrash) he raised his eyes to see the camels coming from afar. And just then Rebecca raised her eyes and saw Isaac. In that moment, in literally the blink of an eye, seeing each other for the first time they became bonded. And as the text states, Isaac brought her into the tent of Sarah his mother he married Rebecca, she became his wife, and he loved her. One could say the fell love at first sight!
Isaac who mourned deeply the death of his mother Sarah, is consoled by Rebecca and starting his own family.
We may not readily rely on instantaneous decisions for every choice that we have to make. But it is comforting to know that even the patriarchs and matriarchs of our own tradition at times made important decisions affecting not only their own lives but really our whole tradition—in the blink of an eye!