A Powerful Story by Rabbi Shlomo Landau

and with a great story this story is inspiring it's uplifting and it surely gives us pause and hopefully during these very special days it'll give us a few moments to think about how we could recalibrate and upgrade Our Lives when we stand in front of Revenge of my name Kipper we could be nektam sealed and inscribed for an excellent good amazing life there was a young couple that got married and life was so perfect they cared so much about one another they were so happy they were so filled with joy and if they thought their Joy couldn't be increased it was because about a year and a half two years after they got married they had a little baby boy who brought so much more joy and simcha to their home when the boy was about four or five months old the parents had a wedding of a close friend that they decided they would attend they got a babysitter to take care of the baby while they were gone and they drove off to Long Island about an hour and a half or two hours away from their home and they had a great time at the khasana at the wedding and on the way back they began the Trek Back eager to come back to their baby who was at home to relieve the babysitter of her responsibilities but when they were about an hour away from their home all of a sudden a terrible storm hit the area that they were in and in truth they probably should have pulled over and waited until the storm was over but in their anxiousness to get back to their baby and because of their desperation of the babysitter they decided to try to keep driving and plotting on and on and sadly a very strong wind came a big Squall and it pushed the blew their car and they lost control the car fell off the road down an embankment smashed at the bottom and sadly unfortunately both the father and the mother lost their lives meanwhile back home the babysitter was alone she wasn't coming the parents weren't coming the baby was there and eventually word got out and the community was devastated a beautiful young couple but even more unfortunate an orphan no father and no mother and just a little tiny baby a helpless soul and there was a big discussion what do we do with this child at the end it was decided that the older brother of his father the deceased father him and his wife already had a few children would take this child in and they would raise this child literally like one of their own they promised to his parents they promised to her parents that they literally would have dotic over this child they would shower with affection and love a care and they would literally raise the child as if it was their own biological child and they were true to their word they took such special care of this child so much so that his own well non-biological siblings his cousins had absolutely no idea that he was adopted they thought that he literally was one of their own as did he and even when he got older and the parents called him in and they shared with him the whole story and they said to him listen we care for you like our own child there's really no difference he agreed they literally took such amazing care of him and he felt so loved and so cherished it was amazing and he got older and he graduated high school and he went off to Yeshiva on Earth's thrall and he came back and he was just such a great kid they loved him and he loved them and it was literally an optimal some situation for such a terrible terrible situation the problem was when it began to get closer to the time for him to find a life partner to marry someone for some reason he dated many girls and he just couldn't find the right person and years past three four five years and he's dating and he's trying and his friends are all getting married and what's wrong with me how come I can't find somebody and and he's popular and people want to date him but somehow it never works out one day a friend of his father's calls his father and stepfather in it and he says to him let's go out for a drink that's something we need to discuss he says to this boy's stepfather he says to him your son's been dating for a bunch of years and he really hasn't found the right person you know he's not the only one your own biological daughter also has been dating for its four or five years already and she for some reason hasn't found the right guy either I know this idea sounds so crazy it sounds so out of left field but what do you think about maybe your stepson and your biological daughter their first cousins they're permitted to get married maybe that's hashem's plan maybe they're not finding anyone because they're for one another and at first he wrote him off he said are you crazy it's like a brother marrying a sister it's impossible to have such a thing it's just not right but as the time progressed and he realized that his daughter wasn't finding happiness and that his stepson who he really loved and cared about wasn't finding happiness either one day he decided to have the conversation and he called over his daughter and he says I know this is going to sound so crazy please forgive me but my dear friend suggested that maybe just maybe you'd be willing to go out with your stepbrother maybe he's the maybe he's the right guy for you At first she said are you crazy but the truth is in her heart of hearts she really did like him and she agreed and then he had to broach the topic with his son who initially made it like this is the most insane idea he heard but has a little bit of time passed he got more used to the idea and they agreed to go out with one another and it didn't take long before they came back with the happy news that they were getting engaged and that they would establish God willing a beautiful Jewish Home the community went crazy from the it was a little bit of a strange at the engagement party the girl's biological father paid for both sides he was both sides and the truth is true to his words he took care of both his daughter his biological daughter and his stepson in the most incredible way throughout the entire engagement he bought them an apartment and a car and he furnished it and clothing and he made the most beautiful stunning lebedic a happy simhadika wedding and there were some I guess you could say moments for pause when he first walked his stepson down and then quickly left to go walk his daughter down that was not a dry eye in the room and when the young man hugged his father-in-law right after the couple was over everybody was singing it was beautiful and the wedding lasted till late in the night everybody danced it was amazing it was special everyone felt a certain simcha a certain deeper happiness and the young couple was so happy so happy it was like a of a match made in heaven and the truth is they did have a lot in common everything went really well for this young couple till about six eight months into the marriage they moved to a little bit of a different neighborhood that's where the apartment was and he met a group of friends let's just say that we're probably not the right type of friends for him and these guys were we call party animals they spent a lot of time going to places and concerts and drinking and doing things they shouldn't be doing and he was swept up in their Michigan their stupidity started coming home late at night he started neglecting his responsibilities to his wife and instead of being the incredible husband that he was capable of being he sadly became indifferent to his wife as he spent more and more time partying with this group of friends his wife was devastated she was broken she knew the potential she knew the good husband he could be and yet he was leaving her he was neglecting her for this group of less than desirable friends it's just not okay and sadly the day came where he came home inebriated under the influence and there was a discussion and she took him to the table and he responded in a very nasty way and he said things he never should have said and he did things he never should have done she was so broken but she packed a small cool suitcase she took the car and she drove back home to her parents house she knocks out the door 12 30 1 o'clock in the morning and her parents opened the door and they're shocked to see her there and she's crying and she's disheveled and they can't believe it they had no idea about this and the father is so angry at his stepson he gave him everything and more than that he gave him his most precious thing his beloved daughter and instead of appreciating her and cherishing her and taking care of her this is the way he treats her and he promises on the spot I will never have anything to do with this young man I don't care if what my relationship was until this point he lost it that ingrate that despicable human being and I'm going to take back the apartment and I'm going to take back the Furnishing and I'm going to take back the car and I'm throwing him out onto the street if this is how he treats my daughter I want nothing to have to have anything to do with this fellow ever again and he was true to his word the next day what his son-in-law wasn't there he brought a moving truck and moved and everything out locked the front door took the car and his son-in-law was all alone and his son-in-law realized the terrible mistake that he had made how he had made the worst choice in his entire life he turned his back on a loving father and mother an incredible wonderful caring wife and he spent time with these people what kind of exchange is that what kind of in great was he what kind of behemo what kind of person would do such a thing but he realized it was too late there was no way in the world he got the message loud and clear from his father-in-law and his stepfather that he never wanted to see him ever again he moved him with a friend but he was so lonely and he was so remorseful and so regretful he realized he'd made the greatest most colossal mistake that he ever could make and he figured he has to try to do something about it so one Sunday morning when he knew nobody was home besides his father-in-law his stepfather he gathered up the courage and he knocked on the door his father-in-law answers the door but he says you and he tries to slam the door in the young man's face but he puts his foot there and he says I promise you I will never talk to you again for the rest of my life I want the opportunity to just have one conversation and it won't even be long stepfather slash father-in-law begrudgingly says get in here but make it quick they sit down on the couch and the young man begins to cry bitter hot scalding tears and he shares with his father-in-law the incredible regret that he feels he realizes what an ingrate what a cough we type of what a terrible person he's been to his father-in-law and worse than that his father-in-law gave him such a precious gift his daughter and instead of treating her respecting her and cherishing her he treated her in the most despicable way and he says I know that by the letter of the law you should never talk to me and have nothing to do with me he says but I just want to say one thing to you as a son-in-law don't even have a right to open my mouth but he looks at him and he says to him but Daddy now I turn to you as a son to a father you've raised me from when I was a little baby and you are my father that's how I view you and I know that you view me as a son and even if as a father-in-law you never ever want to talk to me ever again and every fiber of your being says I'm repulsed by this fellow but I'm still your son and you have to give me one more chance as a father a merciful father would have rahmanas would have compassion and mercy on his son I beg you give me just one more chance one more chance and I promise you I won't disappoint you somehow talk to your daughter explained to her some are tell her that it was a terrible lapse of judgment and that I'm so regretful and I'm more sorry than I've ever been in my whole life and she should just give me one more chance and I'll promise and I'll prove to her that I'll be the best most caring amazing husband since Master voracious I beg you just one more chance and his stepfather was very moved by this plea he did love his son in essence deeply and he cared for him all the years like his own child and he gets off the couch and he gives his son a hug and he goes I'll see what I could do but there's no promises a week later he calls his daughter-in-law his daughter in and says I have to share with you a conversation and he shares the whole conversation and he says what do you think should we give him one more chance and the truth is she knew he was really a good person and that it was a terrible lapse of judgment and she said one more chance but if there's even a slip up in that one more chance it's all over he shares this with his son-in-law his son the couple gets back together and he becomes the most amazing husband he's home breakfast lunch and dinner there's always a nice little note something special he's always going out of his way to show how much he cares about her how much he cherishes her and how much she appreciates the second chance his father-in-law sees this his mother-in-law sees this the young lady sees this and the relationship begins to flourish once again and the couple lives happily ever after explains the Dublin Market that this story is really the story of each and every Jewish person and it's the story of Our Lives particularly during this period of time of Rosh Hashanah and Jana Kipper you may have been the days of judgment but also you may remember the days of mercy and compassion and forgiveness the father in the story is the Rubina Father in Heaven avinu malkanu who literally gives us everything quote unquote he adopts us and takes us in and provides us literally with everything we need as the most caring father in the world and at some point the Republic says if that's not enough I'm going to give you my precious daughter the apple of my eye the thing that I love most in the world and that's the holy Torah which is so precious to Hashem which he loves more than the entire world that we're in it preceded the world and their belusham just says listen I gave you everything and now I'm giving you my most precious thing take care of it appreciate it learn it cherish it practice it respect it and then everything will be fine but sadly because of the circumstances maybe it's our social circumstances our friends the world around us and a million other reasons we neglect the rabbana sham's precious daughter we neglect the Torah we don't give it the proper respect we disrespect it we spend time pursuing other things and we don't realize the incredible treasure that the rebutter storm has given us Lam sees this the Torah goes back to him and says he's disrespecting me he's an engraved he's this is terrible what's happening I want nothing to do with him anymore and that's din that's judgment Hashem looks at USANA and he says how could you do this I gave you everything and I gave you my precious daughter and you turn your back on her and you treat her and you disrespect her and you mistreat her and you neglect her and you malign her forget it it's all over but then we turn to the Republic an and we say this is the day of our birth this is the day you became Our Father you're not just volcano you're not just our father-in-law your Aveeno you're our father and now we turn to you as a child turns to a father and we beg you for another chance give us just one more chance to show how much we love your daughter give us just one more chance to show how much we respect your daughter and how much care we could give to your daughter and how we could do it on her and make sure that she's never neglected she always feels appreciated and she always feels respected please just one more chance and the Republican in his unbelievable infinite trust that his kindness his mercy and his compassion says okay I'll talk to her let's see what we could do and he gives us one more chance but it's a limited chance you see that father father-in-law didn't give him forever he needed to show immediate results he says listen you have two months to prove this two months not more than that and the robotism gives us even less he gives us 10 days and he says in those 10 days you better prove to me how much you love my daughter how much you love the Tyra how much you respect it how much you cherish it how much you care for it and if you can prove it to me I will let you continue to be my son and I will let you continue to be married to my daughter and I'll give you the opportunity to live happily ever after my dear friends ladies and gentlemen Wherever You Are right now is that period of time at grace period it's a seriously made sure it said 10 days of repentance and we've already expended more than three of those days and we must prove to Hashem in this period of Time how much we respect and cherish the most precious thing that he has his holy Torah and this is the reason why the writes a very strange thing the shokhana says that even if a whole year a person is not Mac pinampas Israel they're not meticulous to eat bread or big products baked goods that are only baked by a Jewish person they rely on the coulon the leniency of pass Powter of bread baked by a non-jewish baker and that's okay but during a series don't rely on that leniency upgrade try to keep Posse strong and avi's question is who you fooling you know that the moment Yom Kippur is over maybe if you're even gonna break your fast on some stelladora cookies which are not Posse's wrong so who are you fooling you can't pass Israel for a few days and then as soon as those days are over all of a sudden you're gonna go back to being your right same regular self so the whole thing is just a sham it's just an act the answer is no in that grace period this young man needs to show and go above and beyond he needs to be home breakfast then lunch and dinner he needs to constantly drop her notes and buy her chocolates and show her how much he cares loves and appreciates her and then he's proven that he's committed and that's what we do during that series to make chuva during this incredible period of time we make sure not to take any shortcuts we shower entire way of life with attention we dive in with more kavana we're more careful what we say what comes in our mouth and what comes out of our mouth we try to spend more time giving attention to the Torah maybe we've been learning over the year but we spend more time learning now and that proves to that our father in Heaven how much we really care about his daughter and when he sees that he says there's nothing more in the world that I want to have than to have you live happily ever after and let me bask in the nachas and the joy of seeing this beautiful couple flourish and grow so important and it's so powerful and it's right now we must take care of his daughter