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Friday

י"ט אדר ב’ התשפ"ד

Friday
י"ט אדר ב’ התשפ"ד

חיפוש בארכיון

192. Effort (2)

Using the aforementioned rule of when one should avoid bothering other people, one should also learn the method by which a person should relate to his own children. If one sees that they enjoy serving him and want to do so, then he should ask them to help him, and thereby give them the merit of fulfilling the commandment to honor one’s parents. If, however, he sees that they find it difficult because they do not want to fulfil the commandments, and when they do help him, they do so only because they are embarrassed not to, and they therefore do it unwillingly, in this case he should not bother them nor should he ask them to do things. Instead, he should serve himself. This is especially true when the members of the household are sleeping, one should be extra careful to have pity on them and not wake them from their slumbers. Instead, he should fulfil his own needs. He should even do their needs, and this will be considered having fulfilled the commandment of doing kindness with any person, which includes even his own children and household members.

It all depends on the time of the action and the nature and character traits of the household members. If the action is one which will be hard for them, whereas for him it will be easy, it is better that he should have a small amount of bother, and not allow them to have a lot of bother. By doing this he will honor Hashem with that which Hashem has given him the ability to be light-footed and not lazy, and therefore perform acts of kindness with all people.

“My brothers and my nation, take this sefer Torah, and with this, and like this learn well, so that you should have it good; listen and enliven your soul, and achieve gladness and joy in this world and the world to come” (From the author’s intro.)