Fruit of Faith
And now I want to conclude with one more example that we should especially think about at this time of the year. Because Chamisha Asar b’Shvat just passed today and it pays to ask, how could such a thing go by without a person growing in emunah? Now, I understand that some people ate some fruit and they made brachos too. Very good but to make a bracha, that’s the bare bones minimum.
Why don’t you put on your table a red apple and sit for a few minutes, at least, and look at it. The apple is saying, “Look at me! I’m a demonstration of Hashem’s wisdom and kindliness!” Can such a thing ever be manufactured by human beings? Such a luscious package of food! It’s a drink too! And it’s cunningly put together in cells so that when you slit the apple, the juice doesn’t spill out; the juice is imprisoned in thousands of little cells.
And inside, it’s so wonderfully sugary. It’s delicious. Not too sweet and not too sour! The enjoyment in the apple is exactly suited to you, exactly suited to your taste buds. And when you finish eating the delicious content of the fruits, inside there is a coupon that entitles you to another package; the seeds. It’s like eating a box of cereal and when you get down to the bottom of the box, there’s a coupon there entitling you to another free box.
