Actualizing Tisha B’av

I’m also inured to the Churban. Imagine a child who had been hit by a car and lost both legs. Tragic! Soon enough, however, say in about half a year, his classmates come by to visit and ask how he is doing. He says “I am doing wonderfully! I have a newfangled motorized wheelchair; with the press of a button it moves where I wish. It even climbs steps! And it has a built-in computer, so I can play games on it”. His friends nod sympathetically “What a nebech! He is even happy!” His happiness does not diminish the pitiful situation. All it means is that the poor kid has accepted his miserable existence. Although he is happy with his lot, his happiness does not mean that his lot is good. So are we. We think ourselves very happy without the Beis Hamikdash. All that means is that we have forgotten what life with the Beis Hamikdash was.
Perhaps a start is to think of those things we wish for in our lives, and see if they will not be answered by having the Sh’china back amongst us. We struggle with parnassah, perhaps. When things were as they should have been we were prosperous. We lack guidance. There may be an illness in the family. At times we do not feel spiritually stagnant. Will having the Sh’china amongst us affect these?