The Taxi and the Dumpster - Vaad harabanim : Vaad harabanim The Taxi and the Dumpster - Vaad harabanim

The Taxi and the Dumpster

Dear Vaad Harabbanim,

I want to tell you two stories that happened to me.

The first happened a few weeks ago. A day before we were to travel abroad, I was riding in a taxi with one of my children to arrange one of the children’s passports. I was holding a large envelope with the whole family’s passports, my credit card, and other important documents. I put it down by the back window while I was taking my son and the stroller out of the taxi, and forgot it there!

When I got home and realized what happened, I immediately called the taxi company, and the dispatcher announced it to all the drivers, but no one responded. We were meant to fly early the next morning. You cannot imagine how I felt at that moment.

Then I remembered that when people are in a predicament they often pledge to Vaad Harabbanim and see yeshu’os, so I pledged a respectable sum. I told my wife that I was going out to the street in case the driver came back, but she insisted it was a waste of time.

I stood outside the nearby supermarket and after a short time I saw the very same taxi pull up, and on the rear window, there was my envelope, sitting exactly where I had left it! I couldn’t believe my eyes! I praised Hashem for helping me in merit of my tzedakah.

I opened the door and told the driver the story. He said I was luckier than I realized because he planned to go home after dropping me off, but unexpectedly decided to shop instead. I said it wasn’t luck, it was the merit of tzedakah!

The second story was just a few days ago. We were doing renovations in our home, and I was concerned about the workers being around our silver and other valuables, so I wrapped them all up in newspaper, and hid them in a black trash bag.

The housekeeper took the garbage on her way out, thinking it was just another bag of garbage. She threw everything into the common dumpster down on the street.

After a few minutes I noticed it was missing and I realized what had happened. I ran out to look for it in the dumpster. It was half an hour before Shabbos, and I knew if I didn’t find it now, then I wouldn’t be able to look for it on Shabbos, and after Shabbos, the dumpster would be overfilled, and I would never find it. After fifteen minutes of frantic searching I gave up and returned home.

Then I remembered how Hashem helped me a few weeks earlier when I gave tzedakah to Vaad Harabbanim, so I made another pledge, and resumed my search, full of confidence. Not two minutes passed and I found the bag – in the same spot where I looked before.

Thank you, Vaad Harabbanim, for enabling us to experience and appreciate Hashem’s miracles!!