Ahavas Chinam Week One – Treasure Hunt

To build ahavas chinam, we sent our readers on a treasure hunt: Tell us about any acts of chessed you spot, small or large. The game may be habit-forming, until we see only good in acheinu Bnei Yisrael.

Enjoy these first findings.

The Beauty Inside

This is going to be different from most of the entries, because the hidden ahavas chinam is found in myself, and the person looking for it is also myself. I am a busy mother who found myself taking care of my elderly mother-in-law. The work is stressful physically and emotionally. I try day after day to deal with it, and even to grow from it. I try to see the greatness in myself for being willing to try. Dealing with dementia takes patience, managing anxiety requires understanding, and responding to demands needs strength. When I don’t succeed in this huge task, I must give love to myself for trying. I need to have ahavas chinam as well for my mother-in-law, who is a daughter of Hashem and who would like to be kind and gentle but is impaired at this point in her life. I need to have love for her despite how she acts right now, because the Borei Olam obviously loves her and wants her to remain in this world, perhaps to give me a chance to get the reward for loving her unconditionally.

– Tzippy Berger

On the Right Page

In shul recently, an older member accidentally dropped his siddur on the floor. A young bar mitzvah boy noticed and went over to the siddur and picked it up to return it to its owner. But what struck me was that he didn’t stop there. He first opened the siddur to the correct page and only then did he hand it back to the older mispallel. I was incredibly moved by the extra step he took.

 I told the boy’s father, in front of the boy, what a wonderful son he and his wife had raised. I added that I don’t think I ever saw anyone do that before, and I likely would not have thought of doing that myself.

– Moshe Goodman

Unlocking Opinions

It wasn’t meant to happen that way, but it did. I went to retrieve an item from the hallway and when I returned to my apartment, the door wouldn’t budge. My baby was locked inside and there was nothing I could do. I started to tense up and felt the fear grip me. My brain started working frantically to come up with a plan.

“Hashem please help me,” I begged — and immediately the idea came to me: call Chaveirim! I tried to think of another solution. I’m embarrassed to admit, but I had long held a rather negative opinion of them. Boy, was I proven wrong!

Within three minutes of calling Chaveirim, a man was at my door and went right to work — but the door wouldn’t open. A few short minutes later another fellow came for reinforcement. That day was scorching hot and those two men where sweating profusely in the heat. For no pay. When the door finally opened and I was reunited with my crying baby, I knew that what I had erroneously perceived as ordinary men, were true heroes.

– B. B.

Brooklyn NY