Mailbag Time: Chizuk from Redondo Beach, CA

Since it's a mitzvah to publicize a miracle, then I'm obligated to tell how Tinok ben Aviva was directly responsible for a revelation of Hashem this past Shabbos, at our shul, the J.C.C. Chabad in Redondo Beach, California. Whenever I have tried to tell it, it always seems to come out as a "I guess you had to be there..." type of story, and so I hope Hashem will help me to give it over so that a reader will get some of the "juice" that I get just remembering it.

A couple of weeks ago, I paid a visit to one of several blogs I visit regularly, Yeranan Yaakov. His new post was entitled, "Pray for Tinok ben Aviva". Besides referencing another blog, "Modern Uberdox" as the source of his post, he also linked to Elchanan Shoff's wonderful article. I have to confess, I only glanced over the article briefly, but I added Tinok's name to my list of regular "mishabeirachs" for Mondays, Thursdays, and other Torah reading days.

Fast forward to this past Shabbos Tetzaveh. A good friend of mine has a family from out of town staying at his home for Shabbos. Aside from one of the sons, Matthew, who's visited our community once before I'd never met any of them before. After the Torah reading, the Rabbi started making the call for "Mishebeirachs - first for men, please." When my turn came, I called out, "Tinok ben Aviva" and after he repeated it, I turned around for a second, and I saw that my friend was having a somewhat serious discussion with two of his guests, the father and the son, Matthew. What was a little disturbing was that they kept looking at me with something like surprise on their faces, and seemed to be talking about me. I couldn't help but wonder what was up as I saw the son, break away from the discussion and start making his way up to me. At that point the Rabbis finished his bracha for the men, and made the call for, "Mishabeirachs - for women now, please" so i turned around to submit the two names who are always on my women's list. When I turned around again, Matthew had caught up to me, and asked me, "What connection do you have to Tinok ben Aviva? How did you know that name?" I told him about how the call to pray for this child was posted on this blog i regularly visit, and that although I didn't really know the full story, Baruch Hashem, I'm a father, and for that reason alone, I can sympathize with the parents of a sick child, so I was happy to take on adding his name to my prayers. Before I could ask him "why do you ask?" he was already into, "because Tinok ben Aviva... his family... that's my cousin! When my father heard someone call out that name, it made him jump. Who out here in Redondo beach would possibly be asking about Tinok ben Aviva? Thank you so much for doing that, that is so kind..."

At this point, we started to look at each other with that Yirat Hashem look on our faces, as it settled in that Hashem was "drawing back the curtain just a little extra" and revealing Himself to us, just a little more. The obvious precision coordination of events over a span of months that brought all of us together at that one moment, just to reveal Him ... wow, and I mean WOW. I barely made it back to my spot, I was so dizzy trying to process the Hasgacha Pratis that just happened, but when I did, something wonderful clicked with me. My "fear" aspect of the experience was replaced by an overwhelming sense of joy, and, I had to do everything to restrain myself from laughing and dancing right there. I was so overflowing that I went to the back of the room and spent the rest of the service pacing back and forth as i davened to keep myself in check. This little tzadik whom I had never met, was the catalyst that brought these four Jews to revealing Hashem.

It's a bittersweet feeling to somehow have merited a part in this story. As i thought about the events from this past Shabbos, I told Hashem that if I did anything of any merit that resulted in your being just a tiny bit more revealed in this world, while I don't think that I have anything coming to me, I can imagine you "rewarding" me in some way. I imagined a conversation which really was more like a prayer, "Hashem, the only reward I want is that You reveal Yourself even more, and give that boy a refuah shlaima. You want to reward me? I will accept an invitation to dance at his Chasoner in a few years, if you insist on giving me something.

I apologize for the ramble of this letter, and I sincerely hope that I have been able to give some measure of comfort or chizuk. My greatest hope is that by my publicizing what Hashem did this past Shabbos, that the little shliach who was catalyst for the whole series of events will have achieved whatever it was that he needed to be sick for, and begin down the road to a long, full, healthy life full of simcha and bracha and nachas, for him, his parents, and everyone else his life touches.