You walk over to Joe and remark innocently, “Joe, you really should watch your health. Maybe join the gym and work out. Get into shape.” Joe turns to you incredulously and says, “Me work out?! Can’t you see what I do for a living? All I do is lift heavy loads – thousands of pounds, moving, moving, moving. I don’t need to work out – that’s what I do all day.”
You look at Joe and say, “Joe, that isn’t you who is lifting. The crane is lifting! You’re the little guy inside manipulating the levers.”
This is an apt parable to the human. Hashem formed the human being – the pinnacle of all Creation. Man is the reason for everything in existence and center of it all. And the human was invested with fantastic powers. He can think; he can do; he can accomplish. He has a mind that is insightful, creative, intuitive, and brilliant.
Every human should feel an overwhelming sense of pride.
But this pride is tempered with the understanding that “I am the guy inside the crane.” I was put into this body. I didn’t make the brain. I don’t know much about weaving neurons or stretching skin. I am the little guy inside who moves the levers so that powerful things happen.
So am I great or am I tiny? The answer is both. The crane I operate is a human being. As such, it can accomplish worlds. It is mighty, powerful and influential; it was created in the image of Hashem and is worthy of great respect. At the same time, I am the little guy who sits inside. I am Joe, the crane operator. I move the levers, and this powerful creation moves, does, and accomplishes. The crane is huge, but I am little.
Moshe Rabbeinu fully understood this and, as such, was fantastically humble. Yet he understood his role and influence. When it was time to act, he was bold because he understood the greatness of his position in the world. Yet he remained ever modest.
This balanced perspective allows us to understand our inner greatness while maintaining our sense of humility, remembering that while the entire cosmos may have been created for our sake, we are but creations and servants of Hashem.