This weeks Parsha is Parshat Vayechi, which means “and he lives”. In the parsha, Yaakov blesses his son, Yoseph, and basically tells his other sons that they are not as important as Yoseph. Also, Yaakov dies in this weeks parsha. I found it strange and ironic that the parsha is called Vayechi when infact Yaakov dies. When I read the parsha, I thought that his spirit lived even though he died.

There is a Midrash that says Yaakov Avinu “לא מת,” which means that Yaakov Avinu did not die. His message, soul and teachings lived on although he physically died. We can understand from this week’s parsha, evidently, that the legacy we leave in this world can be eternal, and can impact generations forever. Yaakov understood that although his life may be finite, his existence is infinite, and that we, too can be infinite as well.