Bentzy's wife went to a wedding and asked her husband to please make sure all the kids go to sleep on time. "Of course!" Bentzy said. I've got it under control. When she came home late at night, everyone was up and running around. Bentzy was "out cold" on the couch. "What happened?" she asked.
"Let me explain," Bentzy said, while rubbing his eyes. "Remember when we went away for Shabbos Keiravtuni and they had all these speeches and good tips about chinuch? They said, 'the best chinuch is to be a good example.' I told the kids to go to sleep, but it wasn't working, so I decided to be a good role model, so I went to sleep myself to be a good example..."
What's The Lesson?
Do you want to be a good influence on others? Just be yourself! Be good, do good, and others will learn from you!
Avrumy got married, and his wife cooked amazing suppers. But every time, Avrumy just said, "it’s okay." One day, she wanted to make something even better. But she forgot it on the stove, and it got mostly burned! It was too late to cook again, so when Avrumy came home, she had to serve the burned supper. Avrumy asked for more and said, "wow I love this! It tastes just like my mother's food..."
What's The Lesson?
Everyone has their things they are used to. It's called our "comfort zone." Be strong, go out of your comfort zone, be the best possible you! Try it! The next time you are asked to do something a little out of your comfort zone, go for it!
Short Stories and Inspiration.
R' Dovid Trenk ztl would himself go around picking up bachurim from his yeshiva because he "just loved them!" There was a bachur whom R’ Trenk went to pick up every day for two years, even though he never came; he stayed sleeping. One day, he came to daven, and asked R’ Trenk, “Today is Rosh Chodesh, I forgot to say ‘Ya'aleh V'yavo’ in Shemona Esra.” Do I have to daven again?” R’ Trenk didn’t want to tell him that 'yes' because he knew the boy didn’t like davening. He said, “If you want to know the halacha, yes, you must repeat Shmoneh Esrei. But your question is better than the answer. Do you know why? Because nobody usually asks that question!” After R’ Trenk passed away, the bachur shared this story with R’ Trenk’s Rebbetzin, who should have many more healthy years, and said, “Since that day, I have never missed a day of davening, and I never forgot Ya’aleh V’yavo again.”
What's The Lesson?
1) For two years R' Trenk never gave up on this bachur, he just loved him! 2) R' Trenk didn't just look at the question; he looked at the person! He made him feel special and understood!
This connects to this week's parshah:
Yitzchak never gave up on Esav. He loved him, but Esav still didn’t become frum. Question: It would seem all the love he gave Esav still didn't change him? Answer: Maybe he didn't become frum, But Esav respected his father, maybe only because Esav felt loved is why he didn’t try to kill Yaakov while Yitzchak was alive. He knew it would hurt his father. Loving your child always helps. You should love them just because they are your child, no matter what, and always see the good in them.
How To View A Painful life?
R' Zechriah Wallerstein ztl said this story to show how what we may think is bad in life, can really be amazing for you! There was a King who liked to take quiet walks in the nearby forest. He always brought his personal doctor with him just in case something went wrong. One day the King hurt his hand badly. He asked if it could be healed. The doctor wrapped it up and said he's not sure, "maybe yes, maybe no." A few days later the hand got swollen and the pain was terrible. The King asked the doctor to check it again. The doctor still said, "I'm not sure if this will be saved or not." A week went by and the hand grew worse, and they had to cut it off to save his life. The King got very upset and had the doctor thrown into prison.
The next week the King went by himself to the forest and was kidnapped by a group of Indians. They planned to sacrifice him for their avodah zarah. They tied him up and got ready, but the leader stopped and said, wait, this man is not fit for the fire because he is missing a hand. The King was so happy to be alive, he ran straight to the prison and told the doctor how he got saved. "Because of you my hand was cut off, and that was what saved me." The doctor smiled and said to the King "you saved me too. If I had not been in prison, I would have gone with you to the forest and the Indians would have sacrificed me since I was perfectly healthy!"
What's The Lesson:
In life, what can sometimes seem like our worst problem can be our biggest blessing.
This connects to this week's parshah:
Yitzchak Avinu became blind from Esav's burning avodah zarah or because the angels cried when they saw Yitzchak was about to be slaughtered at the Akeidah and their tears went into his eyes. Question: Why did Yitzchak have to suffer so much? Answer: What seemed bad, that Yitzchak was blind, was really for the good. Only because Yitzchak was blind was Yaakov able to steal the blessings, since Yitzchak could not see and thought it was Esav. In life, all the pain is for the good!
Just
love
Them!
