Divine Providence, Kindness and Teshuvah - 5787

I would like to share a story of Divine Providence and kindness that happened over the last few days. I am writing this on a plane heading back from a trip East. I went to Philadelphia for my grandson Dovid Abba Brownstein’s Bar Mitzvah and had planned to return today from Philadelphia. 

(By the way I have to share that the highlight of the Bar Mitzvah was something that I have not seen before. The Bar Mitzvah boy made a Siyum (celebration of completion) of the entire six orders of the Mishnah. This is a monumental achievement for a 12 year old. @Proud grandpa.) 

I changed my plans because my mother was taken to the hospital. She is thank G-d recovering and we expect she’ll return home today. (If you would like to say a couple of Tehillim for her that would be nice and I would appreciate it. I recommend chapter 20 and 99.  Her name is Rachel bat Mariasha. Thanks.). I got a ride from the Bar Mitzvah to New York  last night and was able to visit my mother, and am now on a flight from New York. 

We heard on Thursday night, right before Rosh Hashanah, that my mother had to go to the hospital. We did not want to leave her without family over the holiday, and my sister decided to fly in on extremely short notice from Denver. (All her children are involved in community service in various places around the world.)

We arranged a ticket for Friday morning at 10 PM on Thursday. Now she needed a place to stay in the Midwood section of Brooklyn because there was no place to sleep at the hospital. I wanted to arrange it for her but I had no idea where to start. Then I remembered the Cohen family who live in that area. 

I assume you are aware that we built a small apartment behind our house to accommodate kosher observant families who come here for medical treatment. Most of the patients are young children who need major heart surgery at Stanford Children’s hospital or ear reconstruction and hearing replacement at the California Ear Institute. Occasionally it may be an adult with a serious medical issue that can only be treated here. 

You can imagine that this is a very stressful time for the family (understatement of the year). We created this small home with a fully kosher kitchen and beautiful accommodations to help ease these families’ burden and to be there to help them if they need anything. Many of them don’t speak English and don’t know how to navigate things in a foreign country or strange environment. 

The Cohens had just been here a few months ago and stayed for a while. I texted Albert at 10 pm, 1 am his time, asking him if he could help find a place for my sister. I hoped to hear from him in the morning. Ten minutes later he texted me back and said he would work in the morning to find something. 

First thing in the morning he called me to tell me that his sister in law lives two minutes walk from the hospital. She was leaving for Rosh Hashanah and my sister was welcome to stay there. And Mrs. Cohen cooked enough food for the entire holiday. 

When I thanked him afterward, he told me that his sister in law had just bought the house and he thought that it was in the merit of this Mitzvah. I am looking forward to good news about my mother. 

A few words about the special nature of this Shabbat, Shabbat Shuva. It is named after the Haftorah which begins with the words “Shuva Yisrael ad Hashem Elokecha” - return, Israel, to Hashem your G-d. This is the Shabbat of the Ten Days of Teshuvah. Throughout this period we are contemplating how we can improve ourselves, strengthen our bond with Hashem and fix the behaviors we need to fix. We ask forgiveness of one another, pray and study Torah more and with more intensity, and give much larger amounts to Tzedakah than usual. 

Within this time of Teshuvah itself, Shabbat stands out. I wrote before Rosh Hashanah about the unique nature of Shabbat, how Hashem’s pleasure is revealed, and that therefore we don’t even need to blow the Shofar on that day. Well similarly, the Teshuvah on Shabbat is on a much higher level than during the week. 

Rather than focusing on shortcomings and how to fix them, we focus on the soul and reconnecting with Hashem, its source. Chassidus explains the first words of the Haftorah, to return “ad Hashem Elokecha” literally meaning until Hashem your G-d, to mean that we can reach to “Havaye”, the infinite G-d that is above and beyond all of creation, and make it “our G-d.”  This can be interpreted on many angles. Perhaps a straightforward explanation would be to have a deep, personal relationship with Hashem that permeates everything in our lives. That is something that the holiness of Shabbat helps us accomplish. 

I wish you a Gmar Chatimah Tova. May you be sealed on Yom Kippur for a wonderful, sweet year.