Yosel hummed a joyous melody as he and his horse plodded through the forest on their two-day journey to the city. Suddenly, Yosel noticed a person gesturing wildly by the side of the road up ahead. Yosel was sure that someone was in dire need and Yosel wanted to be of help if he could be.
Within a few moments, Yosel was near enough to take in the whole situation. A Jew was standing next to his fully-loaded wagon, holding his head and weeping aloud like a baby. Yosel couldn't stand seeing a fellow Jew sad.
"What's wrong?" called out Yosel compassionately. "Why is a Jew crying?"
The poor fellow just pointed to the ground. There lay his horse, still as a stone, harnessed to the carriage with one leg in the air; a truly pitiful sight.
Yosel understood. This unfortunate merchant was also on his way to the city but he had with him a wagon full of wares. This loaded wagon most likely represented his income for the next few months. And now, with his horse dead, there was no way for the merchant to reach the market.
"Come with me" offered Yosel. "My wagon isn't nearly as big as yours but you can put some of your things in." But as the words came out of the good-hearted Yosel's mouth, he knew this suggestion wouldn't work. His horse wasn't strong enough to pull a laden wagon and even so, everything left behind would certainly be stolen. The fellow would loose his wagon and the remainder of his goods as well.
"Look," Yosel said, "how much do you need for a new horse?"
The man whispered, "Five hundred rubles," and then began to weep again.
Yosel took the money for the special etrog out of his pocket and said, "Here is 500 rubles. Jump in! We can make it to the market in a half a day. You can buy a horse there, ride it back here and make it back to the market again before tomorrow morning. You can repay the loan later."
Yosel urged his horse on and throughout the entire journey Yosel sang a happy melody, thinking of how lucky he was to be in the position to help out a fellow Jew in need. Within two hour of reaching the marketplace, the Jew had purchased a new horse and was off like the wind to save his wagon.
As the Jew faded into the distance, so did the smile on Yosel's face. He suddenly realized the predicament he was in. Hmm, a two-day journey back to his own town, 500 rubles from his savings, a two-day journey back to the city to buy an etrog, then back home again... Yosel's head began to spin.
"I'm such a simpleton! A fool!" Yosel began berating himself. But suddenly he thought, "Hey! What possible good will come from being sad!? Exactly the opposite; the Baal Shem Tov says that 'Sadness is the doorstep to all sins.' It is a mitzva to be happy and joyous I will be!"
Just then, Yosel noticed a large group of people gathered around one man. Yosel approached and was awed by what he saw. A huge etrog, as brilliantly yellow as the sun, and spotlessly perfect! It was magnificent. He had never seen anything like it in his life. How he would have loved to have purchased that etrog as the special one for his community. Surely the selling price was at least one thousand rubles. Yosel took one last wistful look and then turned away. But then, he heard something that caught his attention. A raffle! It seemed that because no one had such a large sum the owner decided to make a raffle: He would sell 50 tickets for 20 rubles each.
Yosel bought a ticket. He wrote his name on a piece of paper and placed it together with the other 49 slips of paper in a hat. A child was called up from the crowd. He closed his eyes, stuck his hand in and...
Yosel won! Everyone in the crowd shook his hand and patted him on the back. Yosel graciously took the etrog and then walked to the nearby synagogue to recite the afternoon prayers and thank G-d properly. The next morning, Yosel set off for home. He marvelled at G-d's ways and continuously thanked G-d for the goodness He had bestowed upon him.
On his return trip home, Yosel once again caught site of someone by the side of the road. Yosel stopped his wagon and was delighted to see the Jew whom he had helped just the day before. The Jew explained, "A miracle! When I came back with the new horse I found that the old one that I thought was dead , wasn't dead at all. He was standing by the road, eating grass. So I hitched both horses up to the wagon and in no time I made it to the market and sold all my goods in just a few hours at a nice profit. Then I sold the new horse you bought me and raced out here last night so I could intercept you on your way back home, and now here you are, and here's your money back."
So, Yosel helped a fellow Jew in need, acquired a very special etrog for his community, and was even returning to his community with 500 rubles for them to do as they saw fit, all because of his simple joy.
By Rabbi Tuvia Bolton, from www.ohrtmimim.org
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