And his wife understands that; she says, “When you go there, take me along with you. I can’t go in body but I’m there in spirit.” Sometimes she has to urge him too; it’s more comfortable sometimes to keep his legs at rest. But she says, “Hurry up, you might miss Maariv.” And so he takes the hint and gains an alacrity. He walks to the synagogue! And he sits there too! That’s kirvas Elokim! And she has a 100% share. She goes together with him even though she’s busy at home.
Now, the truth is he can’t do it always – he has to make a living too. And even if you don’t go to work; let’s say you’re sitting in the shul all day long, but sometimes the shamash says, “Sorry, sir. We have to lock up; you have to leave.” But that has to be an ambition. “If only I could sit in the Beis Hashem all the days of my life.” To be close to Hashem physically, that’s what Dovid desired. That’s why he said, “Of all the things I desire, the one I really want is shivti b’veis Hashem – I wish I could sit in the House of Hashem, kol yemei chayay – all the days of my life.”
