One year, on the Shabbos that came between Yom Kippur and Succos, Yehuda, a boy from America who was learning in Eretz Yisroel, went away for that Shabbos. He had already purchased his Lulav, and he carefully left it near his bed in the dormitory while he was away. When he returned after Shabbos, he found his bed a little ruffled, which was not how he left it. His things were moved and knocked around a little, and to his dismay, his Lulav had become Pasul.
He turned to his roommate and asked, “What happened to my bed?” Yehuda didn’t want to confront him about the Lulav, so he didn’t mention it. The roommate casually replied, “My friend came for Shabbos and needed a place to sleep. I knew you wouldn’t mind, so I let him use your bed.”
However, Yehuda minded very much since he didn’t have a Kosher Lulav anymore. He was very perturbed, but he kept it quiet and went instead to speak about his frustration to his Rosh Yeshivah, Rav Nossan Tzvi Finkel, zt”l.
Rav Nosson Tzvi said to him, “It’s a shame that your Lulav became Pasul, but I have a suggestion for you. Many people bring me Lulavim for Succos. They would all like me to use the Lulav they bring me on Yom Tov. Come over to my house later and choose a Lulav from my collection. You can use that one this Succos.”
Yehuda was very pleased with this offer, and later that day he came to Rav Nosson Tzvi’s home and found several beautiful Lulavim lying on the table. He chose one, and Rav Nosson Tzvi said to him, “I’m giving this to you on one condition. You can’t bear a grudge against your roommate, or be angry at him at all.”
Yehuda agreed, and went back to Yeshivah, elated at the thought of using such a beautiful Luluv on Succos. Only later, did the family find out the truth about those Lulavim. Rav Nosson Tzvi did not really have any extra Lulavim, and no one had ever brought any for him to use.
Before Yehuda came over, Rav Nosson Tzvi asked his family members to put all their Lulavim on the table, and after Yehuda had taken one, the Rosh Yeshivah gave everyone in his family a Lulav. He was the only one left without having a Lulav, and he went out to go get one for himself. Rav Nosson Tzvi loved peace so much that he was happy to give away his own Lulav to a Bachur, and make sure that no one would be upset with another person, and that there would be peace in the Yeshivah!
Reprinted from the Parshas HaAzinu 5786 email of Rabbi Yehuda Winzelberg’s Torah U’Tefilah.
