By Aharon Spetner
“Yitzy,” asked Shimmy, as the two boys headed to cheder. “Why are you bringing a clipboard with you?”
“Oh it’s because of something I read in one of Totty’s old Toras Avigdor booklets.”
“Rabbi Miller said you should bring a clipboard to cheder?” Shimmy asked, confused.
“No,” Yitzy said. “But he brings the possuk from this week’s Parsha that we say every week in kiddush. - on that day Hashem rested from all of the work which He created to do’. Rabbi Miller asks what it means ‘which He created to do’? And he answers that Hashem put us in this world to do, to create, to kiviyachol take over from the work that Hashem started.”
“Okay, I understand that,” Shimmy answered. “But what does a clipboard have to do with it?”
“Isn’t it obvious?” Yitzy asked his confused older brother, who clearly did not see what was obvious. “We need to improve the world. And I am going to do that by teaching everyone all of the Taryag Mitzvos - imagine how much better a place the world would be if everyone knew all 613 mitzvos by heart! Isn’t that a great idea?”
Illustration by Miriam Weinreb
“I guess so,” said Shimmy.
“So, what’s Mitzvah number 46?” asked Yitzy, taking out his pen.
“Um I don’t know - sefiras ha’omer?”
“Nope,” Yitzy said, making a mark on his clipboard. “Mitzvah 46 is shtei halechem!”
“Oh okay,” Shimmy replied not too enthusiastically. “Thanks for teaching that to me.”
“Amazing!” Yitzy exclaimed. “Now remember that and I’ll test you on it later today!”
“Um... okay,” Shimmy repeated, as they approached the cheder.
In the courtyard, a bunch of boys were throwing a frisbee around before class started. Yitzy ran towards them, his clipboard gripped tightly in his hand.
“Pinny! Chezky! Dovy!” he called.
“Good morning Yitzy!” replied Chezky as he caught the frisbee in mid-air. “Do you want to play with us?”
Something Much Better than Playing with a Frisbee
“No, I’ve got something much better in mind!” Yitzy said brightly.
The boys stopped playing with their frisbee for a moment. Something better? What game did Yitzy have in mind?
“What’s that?” asked Dovy with interest.
“Do you know what Mitzvah number 215 is?” Yitzy asked, looking at his clipboard.
“What?” Dovy said, confused.
“Mitzvas asei number 215,” Yitzy repeated. “What is it?”
“Uh... I don’t know, why don’t you ask Rebbe Caplan?”
“No, I know what it is - I’m asking you! It’s bris milah!”
“Okay,” Dovy said, while Chezky tossed the frisbee to Pinny, who started running to catch it. “Thanks for telling us.”
“Wait!” called Yitzy as Dovy turned to rejoin the frisbee game. “I want to teach you more Mitzvos!”
“Okay, that sounds great,” Dovy called. “Maybe during lunch!”
