I Took the Suitcase full of Bricks
Two men carrying 2 suitcases walked into a hotel.
One suitcase was full of diamonds, the other was full of bricks.
The men left their suitcases at the front desk and went to their rooms. When the bellhop arrived at the room of the diamond merchant carrying a suitcase, he was drenched with sweat and huffing and puffing from exertion.
“I don’t know what you got in here, sir. But it weighs a ton! You better give me a very nice tip!”
“If the suitcase was so heavy,” the man informed him, “you must have brought me the wrong suitcase.”
I was thinking of this story from the Dubner Maggid earlier this week when I paid a visit to the grave of Henny Machlis zt”l. This story, I think, captures Henny greatness. Her suitcase was so incredibly heavy– 14 kids, hundreds of Shabbat guests, not to mention the regular and potentially overwhelming responsibilities that all of us Jewish mothers face. But she knew that she was carrying a suitcase full of diamonds. And that knowledge enabled her to live her life with remarkable joy, enthusiasm, and sense of mission.
On a fairly regular basis, I, on the other hand, feel like that bellhop who took suitcase full of bricks.
The kids.
The house.
The cooking.
PESACH!
So at Henny’s grave this week I prayed to Hashem to open my eyes, as Henny did every day, and really see the contents of my suitcase:
This family
This home
This Jewish life full of so much light and Torah
in Yerushalayim, Ihr HaKodesh!
Please Hashem, I prayed, help me to see, like Henny did, that my suitcase is full of diamonds, 24 karat.
Heavy but happy at the same time.
Amen, sista! I felt the same way today. May Hashem help us all carry our blessed yokes with happiness. My work of the week has been to say to myself, while cleaning or whatever mundane task, “I am building a building block for the house of Hashem.” Bracha and hatzlacha in your building site!
good one, I think I’ll try that line on myself
gorgeous reminder, thank you so much! shabbat shalom!
Guess what – that parable from the Dubner Maggid is to explain a verse in this week’s Haftorah!
Yeshaya 43:22 “וְלֹֽא־אֹתִ֥י קָרָ֖אתָ יַֽעֲקֹ֑ב כִּֽי־יָגַ֥עְתָּ בִּ֖י יִשְׂרָאֵֽל” – If you are weary Yisrael, then it wasn’t Me you were calling.
wow, bsharet that I mentioned it this week!
We should all appreciate the responsibilities we have as privileges…. How fortunate we are. Hashem gives us what we need to take care of what we have. If we can remember that it helps to make this a reality.