When was the last time you cleaned your Glasses?

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 And of Beit Chabad F. Bronzetti 18, Milan Italy

 

Bs"d

 

When was the last time you cleaned your Glasses?

"Don't even look at me the wrong way, snapped Mr. Cohen to his colleagues and fellow office workers. I didn't get an ounce of sleep in three nights. First my baby, then my wife, now my other kids… I have an entire house of sick people, I can't take it anymore.

Finally I get on the train to come to work thinking I'll get some rest, and there is some Jewish man kvetching nonstop, "OY, am I thirsty", "OY am I thirsty". I asked him to please quiet down, to no avail. He simply would not stop. Hoping to get some much needed rest, I finally got up and brought him a cup of water. "Here, I said, drink this cup and quiet down already, I need to rest".

Lo and behold, he starts again, "Man, was I ever thirsty…"

Oy!"

*

The world is black. Read the news: "this is the worst crisis in recent history", hear the lectures in houses of worship: "the crisis is a sign of G-d", and meet your neighbor: "Oy, did ya hear? David lost a hundred million dollars!" (I wish I had so much money to lose…)

Black, black and black is the only color we seem to be seeing recently.

Hello!

Can anyone tell me of a relative of theirs who has not tasted a morsel of food in days? Are any of us homeless? Compare that to the world of merely a half a century ago.

Is there any Jew on the face of the earth, who cannot practice his Judaism due to religious persecution? Can you find me even one Jew! Tell me, who would have imagined this a mere 20 years ago!

60 years ago, six million Jews perished and the world barely blinked; Three weeks ago six Jews lost their lives, and the entire world wept.  

Chanukah is here. At that time, there was no religious freedom on the face of the earth, so a few men had to stand up and fight for it. Today it's the other way around… with a majority of the world living in a free society, whereas the dictators and enemies of religious freedom are on the run.

Obviously our glasses have become tinted recently…

So here is an idea, friend:

In honor of Chanukah, why not take a resolution to clean your glasses and kvetch a bit less! And instead, thank the Creator for a life which our grandparents couldn't even imagine.

And then ask Him for one last favor, to send us the redemption now.

Moshiach Now!

Happy Chanukah and Shabbat Shalom

(Rabbi) Levi Avtzon

(This article does not attempt in any way to make light of the crisis's and of the tragedies which have befallen us, rather it was intended to give a bit of perspective on the greater picture through the lens of Chanukah and Jewish history. Yes, we must beg for a stop to all pain, but at the same time we cannot afford to think black and negative… it's just not the Jewish way.)