By Yehuda Z. Klitmer
R' Nosson was a Chosid of the Rebbe from Zichlin, Poland, Reb Shmuel Abba. He was a flour mill manager. Every Shabbos night for years, the household members would sing together the praises to Hashem before Kiddush. Everyone looked forward to this all week. Yet on this Shabbos night, after R' Nosson poured the Kiddush cup with wine, everyone was silent and came closer to hear the Kiddush. The father took a deep breath and suddenly he sat down and fell asleep in his chair! "Tatty Tatty," all the family members screamed, but there was no response. They tried to wake him up by shaking his shoulder but to no avail. They decided to call a doctor. He came, but he didn't manage to wake him from his deep sleep or understand what had happened to him.
After an examination and finding nothing, the doctor suggested letting him sleep until he woke up by himself. R’ Nosson didn't wake up until morning. He was amazed and embarrassed to hear what happened, and he didn't know what to do with himself.
The next Shabbos night it happened again. And before he started the Kiddush he fell asleep again, without being able to wake him up "When he woke up in the morning and realized that it happened to him again like last Shabbos, He exclaimed. "What's going on here? I can't go on like this. Tomorrow I'm going to the Rebbi"
The next day, he went to the Rebbi in Zichlin and told him the whole story. With tears, he begged him to cure him of this strange affliction.
"It seems to me," the Rebbe told him,"that in some way you have desecrated the Shabbos and the Shabbos is prevented your Kiddush! The Chossid stood surprised and embarrassed and said: "I don't understand. I am so careful with Shabbos laws. I can't even imagine how it could have happened," he replied.
The Rebbe answered: “Go home and surely you will find the answer”.
Heartbroken, he returned home. When he told his family what the Rebbe said they were amazed. Everyone knew very well how much he observed Shabbos. But then one of his adult sons said:
"Father, I must tell you that the Rebbe's words are right. One Shabbos night, when I stayed up late, I saw that you got up in the middle of the night. It was clear you were still half asleep, and you lit a candle to light the way you wanted to get a glass of water, and you blew out the candle when you were done. When I saw you the next morning and you remembered nothing of the events of the past night, I decided not to embarrass you and tell you about what happened. But now when the Rebbe himself said this, I feel obliged to tell you."
The man immediately set his sights again on the city of Zichlin. He told the Rebbi what his son told him and the Rebbe responded, "Indeed so: this is the source of the problem. There are two main obligations towards Shabbos: To remember her and keep her. Hashem said both in one breath. "Remember" is carried out through speech, by expressing the holiness of Shabbos in words by Kiddush. Both are connected! When you inadvertently fail to "keep" the Shabbos, it's hard for you to "remember" her.
R’ Noson begged, "How can I atone for my sins, can the Rebbe give me a cure"!
The only "cure" for you is if you go through a testing experience in observing Shabbos and successfully comply with it."
These words made R’ Noson feel a little better. He believed in the holy words of his Rabbi and decided to stand the test no matter what. A short time later he was called by the Poritz from whom he leased his mill in exchange for an annual salary and a certain percentage of his income.
The Poritz told him that he planned to greatly increase the production capacity of a mill flour, by adding modern machinery, and to recover the large sums of money he would invest, the mill would have to operate on Saturday From now on.
"I won't be able to do that," said the miller in a decisive tone. "I only work six days, I will never work on Shabbos.
"The Poritz raised his voice. "Fool! Well, really," said the poritz, "I know that you can agree with a gentile that you won't need to work on Shabbos, and the mill will remain open so will my income grow." The renovations will take Two months, and you must answer me now, if you intend to continue working seven days and if not, I'll throw you out now of the mill."
"I have never been lenient to make it easy to observe Shabbos, and I will not this time either," declared R’ Nosson firmly.
The Poritz carried out his threat and drove away R’ Nosson from the mill, leaving R’ Nosson without any source of income. It came hard times for the miller and his family. It was hard to satisfy even basic food for their children. Also, he was not yet cured From the "Shabbos sleep", but R’ Nosson was determined not to fail the test of keeping Shabbos, how hard it would be.
Meanwhile, the Poritz completed the renovations and appointed a manager new to the station, one who was ready to work all week. The Poritz admired the new machinery and dreamt of a major production from the mill. But then strange mishaps occurred. The modern machinery kept on malfunctioning and the engineers had no solutions for what caused it. The mill began to accumulate large losses. The Poritz had to admit that the problems were related to the fact that he destroyed the livelihood of the Jewish miller.
He went to the home of R’ Nosson and told him about the situation in the mill and offered to come back and work for him. "And what about Shabbos?" asked R’ Nosson.
"Look," the Poritz replied. "After all the strange problems and losses, I understand that G-d is on your side. Do as you see fit." R’ Nosson was cured of his Shabbos night illness just as the Rebbe told him. He had great success in the mill and became very rich. R’ Nosson always said: "Kiddush" on Shabbos remained his greatest pleasure, much greater than his riches.
Reprinted from the Parshas Lech Lecha 5785 email of Pardes Yehuda
