Adapted from the teachings of Rav Avigdor Miller z"l
“Kinderlach,” Totty said, walking into the house. “We have an urgent mitzvah and I need your help!”
The Greenbaum children looked up in surprise. “Is everything okay?” Basya asked.
“Everything is wonderful!” Totty said. “I just met a poor couple who got married this week. They are baalei teshuvah who are new to the neighborhood and they don’t know anyone. So we are going to make them sheva brachos tonight. It’s a huge mitzvah and opportunity for us!”
The children looked at Totty without much enthusiasm.
“Sheva brachos?” Shimmy said. “Does that mean hours of boring speeches? Couldn’t we take the new couple go-karting instead?”
“Or we could take them on a trip to the air and space museum and show them all of the niflaos haborei in the science behind how planes and rockets work,” suggested Yitzy.
“I’d love to help,” Basya said. “But Malky invited me to come over and brainstorm for her new zerizus project. Maybe another time.”
“Wait, wait, hold on,” Totty said. “This is a huge mitzvah. Anshel Holtzbacher himself has offered to hire a caterer for the event so he can get a chelek in the mitzvah, even though he is away on a business trip.
“I need you three to help with a few things. Basya, I need you to dust the shelves and clean the windows. Shimmy and Yitzy, I want you to straighten up the dining room, sweep the floors, and take out the garbage.”
The Greenbaum children looked disappointed at the boring chores Totty assigned them. But still, they listened to Totty and did their part to get the house ready for the sheva brachos.
A few short hours later, the Greenbaum house had been completely transformed. Tables were set with beautiful tablecloths and the caterer served delicious mouthwatering food. The chosson and kallah arrived, looking overjoyed at how many people had come together to celebrate with them. And to top it all off, right before dessert, the Horki Rebbe himself walked in to deliver divrei brachah to the young couple!
“This was so special,” Basya said to her brothers as they cleaned off the tables.
“Well, at least the food was good,” Yitzy said. “But we had to do so much hard work.”
“Not to mention listening to the speeches,” added Shimmy.
“Shimmy, Yitzy,” Totty said, walking into the room.
“Yes, Totty?” both boys answered.
“It looks like the Horki Rebbe left his watch here,” Totty said, holding up a shiny gold pocket watch. “Would you be able to please run it over to his house?”
Shimmy and Yitzy’s eyes widened with excitement. An opportunity to visit the Horki Rebbe? Quickly, Shimmy took the watch, placed it carefully in his pocket and hurried off to the Rebbe’s house.
“At least this will be interesting,” Yitzy said. “I heard the Rebbe has 40 gabbaim in his house to take care of everything he needs.”
“Oy I wish I could be a Rebbe one day,” Shimmy said. “Imagine never having to do any work yourself.”
But as the boys approached the house of the Horki Rebbe, they were shocked to see none other than the Rebbe himself coming down the stairs carrying two heavy garbage bags.
“Hello yingelach,” the Rebbe said. “To what do I owe the pleasure?”
“U-u-uh we have the Rebbe’s watch,” Shimmy said, holding out the pocket watch, at a loss for words as the Rebbe himself opened the garbage can and dropped the bags inside.
“Thank you so much!” the Rebbe replied, pocketing his watch.
“Uh, can we ask the Rebbe a question?” said Yitzy.
“Of course!” replied the Rebbe, his face shining.
“Why is the Rebbe taking out the garbage himself? I heard that the Rebbe has 40 gabbaim. Couldn’t one of them take out the garbage so the Rebbe could stay inside?”
“This is part of my avodah,” the Rebbe answered, closing the lid on the garbage can.
“I don’t understand,” said Shimmy.
“Think about this week’s Parsha,” the Rebbe explained. “Yankev Avinu arrives in Charan and sees Rochel Imenu, his future wife and the mother of Klal Yisroel, arriving at the well to draw water. She didn’t just stay at home and let one of her father’s servants get the water. She could have done that. But instead she wanted to do it on her own.
“Had she stayed home, Yaakov would never have seen her and she would never have been zocheh to become the mother of Klal Yisroel. It’s only because Rochel didn’t want to be lazy that she became great. She understood that greatness comes from people who do things themselves. That is what made her so great and gave her the zechus to marry Yaakov Avinu.”
Have A Wonderful Shabbos!
Takeaway:
Laziness is a bad middah.
If we want to become great we have to work on becoming an energetic servant of Hashem.
Let’s Review:
- What excuse did Basya give for not wanting to help for the sheva brachos?
- How did the zerizus of Rochel Imeinu make her great?
