Shalom, In the lecture you heard me say to “pack your bags" - I was referring to the person who asked me a question and in his situation it is doable to do that. Regardless, I still recommend to who ever is able to do so, to move to Israel and learn Torah. Not everyone can do it, but many can and should. It all depends on the situation of each person, but the point is that we are SO close to the coming of Mashiach that soon nothing else will mater but the Torah and Mitzvot you have, so why waist your time now on nonsense? Also, I know many people who work half a day and learn the other half and support themselves As for the beard, I never said you have to have a two foot long beard at all, rather any size beard is great and the blessing one gets from having a beard are immeasurable. The itching stage is ONLY in the beginning for a few weeks and once the beard hair grows more the itching stops. The advise is just to be patient during those 2-3 weeks and then it stops. Needless to say that I highly recommend to grow a bread and it is defiantly worth the 2-3 weeks of being uncomfortable Wishing you great success Rabbi Alon Anava