[This was sent in by a reader, M. Baharan, in response to an
article by Bayla Gimmel a while back. Its message is relevant
for all times.]
It was at a bar mitzvah of friends. Together with a former
graduate, I was standing at the sidelines, enjoying the young
boys dancing to the lively music. The young woman, a mother
of ten, ba'h, casually reminisced, "Because of one
talk given by R' Baharan, zt'l, when I was still in
high school, I was able to let my husband learn in kollel for
ten years."
*
There was once a girl who used to take walks with her good
friend in a shopping mall. In one of the store windows, there
was a dress that she became enamored with. Every time they
passed the shop, she became more and more convinced, and
determined, that she needed that dress. She had to have
it!
Finally, at long last, the day arrived when she was able to
buy the dearly coveted addition to her wardrobe. Her friend
rejoiced with her in her elation when she wore it.
About a year later, her friend, who had meanwhile moved to
another neighborhood, came for a visit and after a while,
brought up the subject of that beautiful dress.
"What dress?" asked the hostess. "Which one are you talking
about?"
Her friend was amazed that she didn't even remember. "You
know, the one you were so excited about last year. The one we
saw in the store window in that shopping center."
"Oh, that one. I remember now." They went together to her
closet. The treasured dress had fallen to the floor. "I don't
even wear that one any more. I'm tired of it . . . "
*
That was the story. The way it was told left such a deep
impression on a high school girl that it motivated her to
help her husband continue learning for a full ten years!
