Elul in Russia

We are in the midst of the holy and awesome month of Elul and we are all trembling before the Day of Judgment.

The Skverer Rebbe zy”a described how the month of Elul looked in Russia generations ago. The fear and awe amongst the chasidim was tangible as they awaited the Yom Hadin. Even the simple waggoneers would sit all day in the bais medrash and say Tehillim.

One of the chasidim, R’ Monya z”l, added his own memory of Elul in the shtetl. He recalled that when he was a child, the way the little boys knew that it was Elul was that they would see that their melamed’s eyes were red from crying. They then understood that the summer was over and it was time to get serious.