The following is a brief summary of some of thoughts said over by R' Frand on the parsha this evening. I have attempted to reproduce these vorts to the best of my ability. Any perceived inconsistency is the result of my efforts to transcribe the shiur and should not be attributed to R' Frand.
R' Frand began with a discussion of the Pesach Sheni. He quoted the Gemara in Sukkah which states that the people approached Moshe because they were ineligible to partake in the Karban Pesach as they were tamei - either because they were carrying the bones of Joseph or because they were involved in a Meis Mitzva.
The pasuk states that these people said to Moshe in Bamidbar 9:7 וַיֹּֽאמְר֠וּ הָֽאֲנָשִׁ֤ים הָהֵ֨מָּה֙ אֵלָ֔יו אֲנַ֥חְנוּ טְמֵאִ֖ים לְנֶ֣פֶשׁ אָדָ֑ם לָ֣מָּה נִגָּרַ֗ע לְבִלְתִּ֨י הַקְרִ֜יב אֶת־קָרְבַּ֤ן יְהֹוָה֙ בְּמֹ֣עֲד֔וֹ בְּת֖וֹךְ בְּנֵ֥י יִשְׂרָאֵֽל . Rabbi Frand quoted the Sifri which comments that these people were kosher people and were Haredim - very concerned - about doing mitzvos.
R' Frand explained that the message of the Sifrei is that these people were very special. They easily could have said - we are patur because we were involved in a mitzvah. But they were upset about missing out on doing mitzvos. This shows their true passion - they wanted to be involved, even if they could not.
R' Frand paralleled this to the current crisis. People could not daven with a minyan for months. And even now that we have outside minyanim, people want to be back in shul [I know that I do]. It shows that even when there is a legitimate reason not to go to minyan, people want it. It would be very easy to say, this is better, because I don't need to get up early for minyan. But instead people want it.
R' Frand mentioned a student who related to him how he felt the first time he answered Kaddish with a minyan, but I had a moving experience as well, as the first time that I answered Kaddish in my backyard minyan last Wednesday I came close to tears. Similarly, although I was not allowed to use Hashem's name when I benched Gomel on Shabbos at the backyard minyan, as it had been more than 30 days since my BH recovery from Covid, I too felt a tremendous HaKaras HaTov and was moved when I made the beracha.
R' Frand noted that this was also evident in the beginning of the parsha. Aharon was depressed because he and the tribe of Levi were not bringing a Karban as a Nasi. It is for this reason that Hashem gave him the mitzva of lighting the Menorah.
R' Frand said a second vort about the upside down Nun which brackets the pesukim beginning withוַיְהִ֛י בִּנְסֹ֥עַ הָֽאָרֹ֖ן וַיֹּ֣אמֶר משֶׁ֑ה (Bamidbar 10:35-36). Rashi teaches that the use of the Nun is meant to separate these pesukim from troubles, but this only explains the troubles which follow the pesukim - the misonnim. But what is the prior trouble?
R' Frand answered quoting Chazal that when they left Har Sinai, they were like kids running out of school. R' Frand said that he was struck how this parsha always falls when schools let out. Except this year, kids want to be back in school. These children want to be in school and they are wanting to be boreach l'beis hasefer. They are asking - why are we losing out.
R' Frand said a third vort on the instruction to Moshe to make the trumpets. Moshe told to make them, but they are only for his use, not Yehoshua's. Every leader has to have his own trumpets.
R' Frand quoted a sefer which cited R' Weisenfeld who explains that every leader has to have his own trumpets to gather the people. Because what worked as a means to communicate with one generation, will not necessarily work to communicate with the next generation.
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