A gift can be an incredibly potent tool to create a kiddush Hashem or to help defuse tensions or hard feelings. The power of gifts to cultivate patience and understanding is illustrated by a powerful story told about a noted maggid shiur in Montreal who lived next door to a triplex occupied by three non-Jews, one of whom was known for his hostility toward the chassidim in the neighborhood. The maggid shiur made a practice of going out of his way to greet the man, and he even purchased large boxes of chocolates once a year for each of his three neighbors.
The maggid shiur’s friendly overtures later turned out to have far-reaching effects. A prominent rav in Montreal was once seeking a male voice therapist, and one of Quebec’s askanim searched far and wide for a suitable practitioner. The field was apparently dominated by women, though, for only one male voice therapist could be found, and he claimed to be too busy to take on additional patients. After a while, the therapist agreed to add the rav to his packed schedule.
This therapist turned out to be none other than the hostile neighbor whom the maggid shiur had gone out of his way to appease, and he made it clear that he had taken the rav as a patient out of appreciation for his gracious neighbor.
Reproduced from A Life Worth Living by Rabbi Shraga Freedman with permission of the copyright holders, ArtScroll/Mesorah Publications, Ltd.
