The thirteenth portion of Torah contains one of those stories almost everyone hears as a schoolkid, regardless if you're Jewish, not Jewish, or have no religion at all. The idea of a small baby boy, placed in a reed basket, floating down the river, only to be rescued by a princess has all the storytelling elements a great tale needs to capture our imagination. That boy, as you probably know, is Moses, who would grow up to become the man who led his enslaved Israelite people out of Egypt towards the Promised Land. In fact, this Parasha is something of a mix of stories that cover a long stretch of time in very rapid succession. This makes it both easier to read, and a little harder to understand. But if you're going to get just one thing out of Parashat Shemot it should be that when G-d asks you to do something, you can refuse all you like, but it's still going to happen.