Tomer was the type of guy who a lot of people knew, even if they didn’t really know him. He drove around town in his bright red Chevrolet, blasting his music so loud that you had to notice him, one way or another. He thought he was happy, or at least he acted as he was happy with all his externalities, but within him was his Jewish neshamah, his soul that wasn’t getting any recognition or satisfaction.
But then, one day something happened, and as a result he started to think about Hashem and His Torah. He decided to check it out, went to a few lectures, and little by little, the more he learned, the more he loved it, and the more he wanted to live as an observant Jew.
And then the day came when he made his life-altering decision to become a baal teshuvah. It was a gradual process, but he was strong and his commitment was deep. Eventually, he became completely Torah observant — yarmulka, tzitzis, Shabbos, everything! And Tomer felt great; finally, he had found inner joy, peace, and meaning in life.
He began studying in a baal teshuvah yeshiva, and it wasn’t long before he was set up with Ronit, a wonderful girl from a secular background who had also become a baalas teshuvah. They went out several times, and when they saw how right they were for each other, including the fact that they shared the same goal to grow in Yiddishkeit, they became engaged.
Tomer and Ronit married and were a great couple. He was learning in Kollel, and she was working and attending shiurim once at least once a week. They were an ideal religious couple.
There was only one thing off. Throughout all Tomer’s growth, he still held to his red Chevrolet! Somehow, his flashy car didn’t fit with the rest of his image. He was wearing a white shirt and a dark suit and hat, and his wife was dressing modestly, and although he was no longer blasting music all around town, just soft Jewish music audible only to them, the car was still flashy!
One day, Ronit felt that the time had come to address the color of their auto. She brought up the subject as tactfully as she could. “Tomer, you’re so refined, you’re learning Torah day and night, it’s not really...it’s, um...I mean...do you feel OK with the car? I mean, it’s so bright red. It’s a bit...loud, a bit...incongruous with who you are today.”
Tomer thought for a minute or two and then, being intelligent and honest, he said: “You’re right.”
“You don’t have to get rid of it,” Ronit said. “Maybe you can just have it painted black.”
Tomer grimaced and said, “Just have it painted? Painting a car is very costly. It could cost thousands of shekels, which we don’t have.” And then he said, “Why don’t we just sell it? We’ll spare ourselves the expense of painting it, and we’ll have extra cash as well.”
And so it was. Tomer advertised that he had a Chevrolet of so-and-so year, gave a price and his phone number, and fairly quickly, they got a call from someone who was interested in buying the car. They made an appointment, and the potential buyer, came over to check it out.
A Good Sale
Tomer was talking on the phone as the man examined the car. He poked and banged, opened the hood and checked out different things inside as Tomer continued talking on the phone. “It looks OK so far,” said the potential buyer. “Are you willing to go down in price?”
Tomer told his friend that he had to hang up, and then he said to the customer: “Maybe a little.”
“OK, but before we even start negotiating, I have to drive it around the block to check it out.”
“Yeah, of course,” said Tomer. At that moment, Tomer’s phone rang again, and he handed the keys to the potential buyer. The potential buyer got into the car, turned it on, and took a spin.
Tomer waited for him to come back — five minutes, ten minutes, half an hour, but the car didn’t come back. There was no point in denying it, Tomer realized. He’d been robbed. The non-Jewish man had been a thief. To top all that off, Tomer’s car wasn’t insured.
After that fruitless half-an-hour, he went upstairs to Ronit and told her what had transpired. She was surprised and commiserated with her husband. “Wow, what a loss. What a disappointment. We thought we’d have that extra money, and now we don’t have the money or the car.” And then she added: “You should call the police as soon as possible. Maybe they’ll find the thief and the car. After all, it’s an easy car to spot.”
“Nah,” Tomer said. “The police are busy with everything else; they won’t go out to find it.”
“Well, look, everything from Hashem is for the good, but still, we’re supposed to do hishtadlus, we’re supposed to make our effort. So why don’t you call anyway?”
“Sure,” said Tomer, and he called.
The Returned Sale
The police didn’t even ask him to come down to the station but just took down all the info over the phone. “OK,” Tomer said after he got off the phone. “I did my hishtadlus.”
Ronit smiled and said, “You know, I’m always working on myself, going to classes and reading, and trying to get better as a religious Jew. Well, one of the things I learned recently is how important it is to thank Hashem for everything. For everything! So, let’s thank Hashem for what just happened.”
Tomer looked at her in disbelief. “You’re saying that I should thank Hashem that the uninsured car was stolen?”
“Yes,” said Ronit. “That’s what I was taught. There’s a bigger picture, and we don’t see it all; everything from Hashem is for the good. And so, we should thank Him for everything.”
Tomer thought for a minute and then said: “OK. If you’re certain about that, then I’m willing.”
“I’m sure,” she confirmed.
This time, it was Tomer who smiled, looked up, and after a moment said: “Hashem, thank You for everything! Thank You for my wife, my home, my food and clothing, thank You for the Torah...thank You for everything...including...” he paused, and then he said: “Thank You Hashem that our car was stolen! Thank You! Thank You!” Then Ronit said basically the same words, thanking Hashem for everything, including the fact that their car was stolen.
“Tomer,” she said with a smile, “I learned that when we thank Hashem for everything, amazing and wonderful things happen!”
Tomer smiled at his innocent, trusting wife and said: “Great! I’m ready!”
Time went by — days, a week, even longer, and the car was no longer a topic of discussion. Tomer and Ronit got used to the fact of the theft and to their new reality of traveling on buses. Then, one day, they got a phone call from the police to come down to the station. “We have your car!” they told him on the phone.
“What?!!”
“Yes, that’s what you heard. We found your car.”
“I’ll be there within half an hour,” said Tomer. As he hung up, he said to Ronit: “Do you believe it? They found the car. Hard to believe, but I’m going to check it out. I’ll let you know what happens. Shalom!” And with that, he left for the police station.
When he arrived at the station, he was greeted cordially and a police officer took him to an area behind the station and said, pointing to a Chevrolet, “There it is. There’s your car.”
Tomer looked at what they claimed was his car, and his face fell. What a disappointment! He had hoped that they had really found his car, but this Chevrolet was black, clearly not his. “It’s not mine,” he told the officer. “It’s a Chevrolet, but not mine.”
“No, it’s yours,” the officer assured him. “Look at the license plates.”
Tomer looked and was amazed to see that it was the exact numbers as his red Chevy. He was confused and said: “How can that be? My car is red.”
The officer explained: “One of the first things a car thief does is have the car painted so it will be less recognizable and harder to locate. But you were lucky, and we found it.”
Tomer was speechless, and then he started laughing. “What’s the joke?” asked the officer.
“Well, first of all, I’m just happy to have my car back. And second, it’s just the way I wanted it. My wife and I didn’t want a red car anymore, but since painting it is so expensive, we decided to sell it. And then it was stolen. My wife and I thanked Hashem for everything, including the fact that it was stolen, and here I see that it was painted, not on our expense. For free! That’s why I’m laughing. I’m laughing from joy and gratitude.”
And then Tomer looked up and said: “Thank You, Hashem. Thank You for everything, including the fact that my car was stolen, and returned, and is the perfect color for a couple who loves You so much!”
