A small kindness at Trader Joe’s

I’ve been fond these past few weeks of recounting a story that recently happened to my wife, Malka, in Trader Joe’s. While waiting in line, she noticed that the person who had just checked out ahead of her had left an item behind on the counter. Glancing out the window, she saw the man still in the parking lot. Without hesitating, she grabbed the item, ran it out to him, and returned it just in time. When she came back inside, the clerk called over the store manager (or “Captain,” in Trader Joe’s lingo) and excitedly exclaimed, “That’s her!

That’s the woman who chased after the man who forgot his item!” The manager handed Malka a complimentary bouquet of flowers, which later graced our Shabbos table. As she left the store, another customer — a woman not obviously Jewish — turned to her and said, “You did a real mitzvah.”

The ripple effect

As I approach Rosh Hashana, I keep thinking about the ripple effect of that one small act. A man received his item back, a clerk and manager felt uplifted, a stranger was moved to speak of mitzvos — and perhaps, to feel a flicker of Jewish pride.

Someone others depend on

The great mussar teachers, such as Rav Dov Yoffen, taught that one way to merit a favorable judgment is to become rabim tzrichim lo — someone upon whom others depend. To the degree that our presence sustains or uplifts others, our own life and blessing become more necessary in this world. This may be especially true in our interactions with less affiliated Jews. Sometimes we may be that one remaining link tethering another Jew to their heritage.

An invitation for the year ahead

And so, as the shofar blows and a new year dawns, I find myself asking: beyond my immediate family, to whom might I be an indispensable link in the year ahead?