When the Previous Rebbe was in exile in Kastrama, he was required to report to the secret police, the GPU, on a regular basis. When he appeared on Yud Bais Tamuz, a smiling official gave him surprising news. His release had been ordered by the authorities in Moscow, and a train ticket would be issued so that he could return to his home in Leningrad.
When Rabbi Eliyahu Chaim Althous, who was with the Rebbe, heard the news, half of his face turned pure white, and the other half turned blood red. The Rebbe had to calm him.
Since that day was an official government holiday, the ticket could not be issued until the next day, Yud Gimmel Tamuz.
A bird from heaven carried the good news to the few Chassidim in Kastrama and, before the Rebbe reached his lodging, the celebrations had already begun.
Rabbi Michoel Dvorkin was dancing around the house with a small bottle of strong drink in his hand. As he danced, he sang, “There is none beside Him” [Nyet, Nyet Nikovo]. Rabbi Michoel continued dancing and singing exuberantly for over an hour.
In Kastrama, the Rebbe lived with the local shochet who had a young son. When the child saw everyone’s joy, he, too, began to celebrate, walking on his hands with his feet in the air.
Our Rebbe teaches that this story can serve as a lesson in our own service to Hashem. There were three different responses to the good news of the Rebbe’s release:
- Rabbi Michael danced around the house with a bottle, singing exuberantly.
- Rabbi Eliyahu Chayim’s face dramatically changed color.
- The child walked on his hands with his feet in the air. (This is like the Baal Shem Tov story about the ignorant boy on Rosh Hashanah. That boy did not know how to pray. When he saw people beseeching Hashem, he gathered all his strengthen and called out like the roosters he saw in his yard, “coka doodle do! G-d have mercy!” His simple prayer was so effective, it annulled all bad decrees.)
Similarly, every person travels through three stages of life: child, adult, and old age. Really we even experience these three stages every day or, certainly, every year.
