We all depend on nature. We assume that or house we left in the morning will be there when we return home, that turning on the faucet will bring a rush of water, not orange juice. We are confident that while peeling and slicing in preparation for Shabbos, the world will not come tumbling down over our perfectly arranged salad. Until one day it does.
It happened to the sister of one of our cherished Ezer Mizion volunteers. The volunteer puts her all into making life pleasant for her clients. In her purse she keeps a cache of smiles which she dispenses generously, never stinting on the extras that will ease the burden of those she tries to help.
Still reeling from shock, she penned a note to Batsheva, her coordinator at Ezer Mizion.
“Whoever brings joy to Mine… I will bring joy to his!” r3eferring to Hashem helping those who help the needy. – I never realized how true this statement is until I felt it on my own skin last night. It is said that when a person needs to be the recipient of suffering, Hashem first checks to see if his relatives also deserve distress. If not, Hashem will create different opportunities to achieve the same results so that his relatives will not suffer unnecessarily. All of us at Ezer Mizion are protecting not only ourselves but our relatives by means of all the zchussim (merits) we accrue. I saw this so clearly last night. Chas v’shalom, I could have been in a very different place today.
There was my sister doing what every other religious woman was doing – standing at her counter preparing for Shabbos. She may have worried about having enough eggs for the kugel but it never occurred to her to worry about her overhead kitchen cabinets, well- installed, showing no signs of the installation wearing…with not even the slightest of warning sounds…come crashing down, burying both her and the food she was preparing beneath their monstrous weight.
Bruises were everywhere. Large cuts, frightening blood. But miraculously, there was no more. No breakage of bones, no painful surgery, no irreversible damage that would permanently affect her life and that of her family and, most important, not the unthinkable. She was alive. Shaken, traumatized but alive.
Dear Batsheva and sister volunteers: know that our zchussim are our protection. For us and for those we love. Hashem, how can I thank you for taking care of mine while I took care of Yours. With my sister healthy, I have the time and stamina to accept many of the opportunities that come my way. Batsheva, I promise You I will do my very best never to turn down an assignment
May we always see miracles, and may we merit to acknowledge and thank Him, and may we all know only good health!!!
“To thank and praise Your Glorious Name for all Your miracles and wonders!” – Tehillim (Psalms) ch. 100 – Mizmor l’todah!
