The Chasam Sofer ztl once shared that his great father-in-law, R' Akiva Eiger ztl, from the young age of sixteen, went through very painful and difficult times in his life. Before R' Akiva Eiger passed away, he asked that only one thing be written on his gravestone where he will be buried: "He accepted all the suffering with love his whole life."
When the people of the town heard this, they asked him, "Is that all you accomplished? You did so much for yiddishkeit! You had many talmidim, answered so many questions in halacha, taught and spread Hashem's Torah to people all over the world!" R' Akiva Eiger answered, "Yes, this is my greatest accomplishment in life. Even with all the pain and hardship I went through, I never complained and accepted it with love. This will open all the gates of Gan Eden for me!"
What's The Lesson?
Can you imagine? The greatness of one who accepts everything that happens in life with love!
This Connects To Pirkei Avos:
We learn that one of the 48 ways to grow is by accepting pain and hardship (Pirkei Avos, Perek 6). The Shinover Rav ztl once told someone that it's very difficult for someone going through pain to accept it while he is going through it. That's why Hashem DOES NOT expect him to accept it with love at that moment! But afterward, when life moves on and one is no longer in the moment of pain, he should not complain and should believe that everything Hashem did and planned was always for his good, even when we cannot yet see or understand the good in it.
