Excerpting: “Moments of Greatness” by Rabbi Yitzchok Hisiger. ArtScroll Shaar Press. 2025. 376 pages. ISBN-10:1422643212.

We Choose the Glasses

(Courtesy of Artscroll) A Yid from England, R’ Shalom, shared with R’ Meilich Biderman that many years ago, he flew from England to New York to attend the wedding of his brother’s child. Just as the plane landed in New York, he had a heart attack. He was taken to the hospital and spent ten days there. Because he didn’t have medical insurance in the United States, he racked up a hospital bill of $30,000. He was devastated.

In his moment of weakness, he called out to Hashem with a question: “Ribbono shel Olam, the fact that You caused me to have a heart attack I can accept as an act from Heaven. But had that very same heart attack occurred just eight hours earlier, while I was still in England, almost all my medical expenses would have been covered by insurance. My expenses would have been minimal. Why did the heart attack have to take place specifically after I was in New York, where, without insurance, I now have to come up with $30,000?”

R’ Shalom related his frustration to his rav, who answered him brilliantly.

“R’ Shalom, listen to me carefully. Don’t you realize that on Rosh Hashanah, it was decreed for you to spend $30,000 on medical expenses. Imagine if the heart attack had indeed occurred in England and thus did not cost you very much financially. Think of how much you would have had to endure in order to accrue $30,000 in medical expenses! Imagine how many doctors you would have had to visit. Imagine how many operations you would have had to undergo. Imagine how much therapy you would have had to deal with. You would have been busy with health-related challenges all year! Instead, the Ribbono shel Olam had mercy on you and sent you to New York, where you wouldn’t have insurance and you would thus reach the necessary amount in just ten days.”

R’ Meilich concluded by quoting the Chazon Ish, who remarked that while everyone has to pass through this world, some go through it crying and some go through it laughing. If we can spend our lives laughing, why would we choose to cry?

The Chazon Ish told R’ Shmerel Greineman that the “package” we receive in this world is given to us by Hashem. But we choose the glasses that we wear to view the package. With what color lens do we wish to view our world? We can view the $30,000 spent as a very “black” event or we can view it as “white” and merciful.

How we look at things is our choice. Let’s choose wisely.

Reprinted from Moments of Greatness by Rabbi Yitzchok Hisiger with permission from the copyright holder, ArtScroll Mesorah Publications.