By Rabbi Chaim Arye Zev Ginsberg
There are some acts of chessed (good deeds) that provoke such a tumult in Heaven that you can practically hear the footsteps of Moshiach around the bend... One such act of chessed happened to a member of my family a while back. My eldest daughter, Shoshana, was on her way to her special-ed teaching job in Brooklyn one winter morning and turned onto the road leading from the Nassau Expressway to the Belt Parkway.
Apparently, a large pothole had developed, and it caused one of her tires to be sliced in half. After her incident, another six or seven cars hit the same pothole with the same results. Stranded on the side of the road in an unsafe place, she called me for help. But being far from the area (and, truthfully, not knowing how to change a tire, either), I did not know what to do.
I decided to try Chaverim (a voluntary organization who deals with roadside assistance and non medical emergency help). Within minutes, they called back and said that one of their members was driving in the area, and he would attempt to help. About half an hour later, my daughter called me with the most uplifting story.
A member of Chaverim named Binyamin stopped and quickly changed the tire on my daughter’s car. The other stranded motorists expressed out loud to my daughter that “you Jews are always available to help each other out.”
Then, Binyamin did a most incredible thing. He proceeded to change the tires on all the other stranded cars in that spot, and that included people from a wide range of races and nationalities. When they wanted to pay him, he refused. My daughter explained to her new friends that he belongs to an organization called Chaverim, whose members volunteer their time and expertise to help people, for free.
Then — to underscore the message — the following occurred: As the various folks were getting back into their cars to return to their own little worlds, they turned to my daughter and said, “You Jews are such special people. It’s surprising that with people like Benjamin, your Messiah still has not appeared. You truly do deserve his coming.”
Let’s not underestimate the great power and influence that a little chessed can have in arousing Hashem’s mercy and bringing an end to all our suffering. After all, it may truly be said one day that saving Klal Yisrael is as easy as changing a flat tire.
Reprinted from “Rays of Hope”- Artscroll.com.
