Vayelech

 The Midrash writes that the first word of our parsha, וילך, connotes  ‎reproof. What reproof was Moshe giving? The sefer Minchas Ani explains that Moshe's reproof is contained in the next posuk where he says " I am one hundred & twenty years old today today my days & years are filled.”  The Zohar writes that even Moshe didn't know until that day that this was to be the day of his death. His reproof was that no one knows when his time is up & one should have his purpose for being in this world in front of him always, as it says, repent one day before your death. Since no one knows when that day is, there has to be a constant state of awareness as to what we are doing with our time.

As the parsha states: ולמדו ליראה את ה אלקיכם כל הימים אשר אתם חיים על האדמה, and they shall learn to fear Hashem all the days that you live on the land. Why does it say that you should fear Hashem all the days? Isn't it a given that as long as one is here, he has to fear Hashem?
Reb Simcha Zissel of Kelm says that the words "all the days" does not refer to the phrase to fear Hashem, rather it refers to the words "they shall learn"‎ - developing a reverence for Hashem Himself is a life-long learning process & something that has to be cultivated each & every day. We need to develop a consistency in our level of commitment to Hashem.

The Chafetz Chaim compared this to a sick man who met his friend. “How are you”, asked the friend. The sick man replied, “I'm seriously ill & running a high fever.” The friend said well, tell you the truth you don't look so bad. The sick man replied, actually today I'm not doing too bad; my fever is down & I'm feeling OK. So, asked the friend, why did you tell me you’re sick? The sick man replied, that's the nature of this sickness; one day I'm delirious with high fever & the next day it's gone but 2 days later it's right back; so trust me I'm sick.

This, says the Chafetz‎ Chaim, is how we approach the mitzvos. Some days we are perfectly healthy serving Hashem fully & then other days we slip into sin.  Our ultimate goal has to be to serve Hashem & revere Him all of our days. The first time the Satmar Rebbe saw a neon sign on a butcher shop that had the words בשר כשר , kosher meat ,flashing on & off he said, that's America; sometimes kosher, sometimes not.

Another interpretation of what Moshe meant when he said "I am a hundred and twenty years old today" is that we should make sure our days are not wasted; he was saying that his hundred & twenty years were complete to that very day, not lacking. The של"ה הקדוש explains that every day that we do something good, that day is internalized for us forever; that day belongs to us.  However, days that we use for bad are considered like dead days; they are wasted.

‎As we approach Yom Kippur, let's take this lesson to heart & commit ourselves to have a greater awareness of Hashem in our lives, to constantly develop our awe & reverence for Hashem. Rabbi Shlomo Gissinger once told me that one way to gain reverence for Hashem especially on these days from Rosh Hashana through Yom Kippur is by concentrating on the word מלך every time we make a bracha. That will be a constant reminder that Hashem is our king. If we can do this on a constant basis, we will ensure that we don't let any of our days go to waste & all our days will be good for eternity!