Ki Savo

When the Torah tells us the rewards for listening to 'ה & keeping the mitzvos, it lists a variety of blessings, from our homes, to our business, children, crops, flocks etc. One of these brochos states ברוך אתה בבאך וברוך אתה בצאתך, blessed are you in your coming and blessed shall you be in your going.  

The gemara in ב"מ interprets this verse to mean when one leaves the world his children should be like him.

The חיד"א asks, if it's referring to leaving the world & coming in to it, how can the posuk say ברוך אתה בצאתך you're blessed when you leave the world, if you can no longer do mitzvos, as compared to ברוך אתה בבאך when you came into the world & are able to constantly gain mitzvos ?

He explains based on the נודע ביהודה's interpretation of another gemara in ב"מ  that states מי שמניך בן כמותו לא נאמרה בו מיתה, that one who leaves a son like him, death isn't said about him.

Man on this world is considered a הולך, one who is constantly moving upward, for one is constantly gaining mitzvos & learning Torah. Once one leaves this world, he's called an עומד, for he's standing still, unable to add more mitzvos.

However, one who toiled with his children to teach them to study Torah & do mitzvos, maintains his status as a הולך even after his death for he has a share in all the Torah & mitzvos that his children do.  

That is why the posuk can say ברוך אתה בצאתך, you're blessed when you leave the world, for if you leave children that are like you & you worked hard to train them, then even when you're gone, you will still be gaining Torah & mitzvos through your children.

It is this concept the אוצרת התורה, states that teaches us how much effort & מסירת נפש  we must put into educating our children in the way of Torah & mitzvos.

This concept is exemplified by the following story told over by ר' שלום שבדרון. In his later years, the רידב"ז lived in Tzfas. One day, when he had yahrtzeit for his father, he came to shul for mincha, and prior to davening, he stood deep in thought, & started to cry.

One of the people that saw this, went over to him & said,” it's understandable that you're crying on your father's yahrtzeit, but he died over fifty years ago & you don't usually cry. What was different today?”

The רידב"ז said, “you're right. I will explain why I cried today. When I was a small child, my father sent me to learn with an exceptional rebbi who charged a high price - one ruble per month.

My father was a poor man who built ovens for a living. Despite that, when it came to my learning he was going to find a way to get me the best. So I went to this rebbi & was learning very well. Three months passed & my father still hadn't paid. The rebbi had been patient, but after so long he sent me home with a note saying, I waited three months & cannot wait any longer. Send me what you owe or I can no longer learn with the boy.

When I brought that note home my father was beside himself. What are we going to do? There was no money. How was he going to send me to learn?

The next morning he heard that there was a rich man building a house for his son & needed to build an oven in it. However, the factory that made the bricks had stopped operating & he couldn't get the bricks for the oven. Still, the rich man wanted the oven & said whoever brings him the bricks will also get the job of installing it & would be paid a total of six rubles.  

What did my father do? He took apart our oven, transported the bricks to the rich man's house & rebuilt the oven in his son's home. He came home with six rubles in his hand. His excitement knew no bounds as he came to me with the six rubles & said, ‘give this to your rebbi; three for the past three months & three for the next three months’.

As for us the rest of the family, we struggled through that winter with great difficulty, barely managing to sleep through the bitter cold nights; but to my father it was all worth it so I could go learn.

Now, ended the רידב"ז, let me tell you why I was crying. When I  was about to come to shul tonight, as I opened the door &  felt the cold & thought to myself, it's too cold to go out; I'll just daven at home. Then I remembered how my father & my family suffered through the bitter cold winter so I could go learn. How could it have even entered my mind to stay home because of a little cold? That's why I cried.”