The Rebbe: His Focus on the Individual - Part 4

00:00 The hemsech to the early installments in a year two gimel tammuz, and the Rebbe's focus on every individual as a world for themselves. We continue now with installment number four, discussing a yechidus of a bachar who studied here in seven seventy, in the year tov shin lamed vav, nineteen seventy-six. He arrived here as a student of a group referred to as the Kutzah, which they would come for a year and study here by the Rebbe. Today, this yid is referred to Rab Seou Jubani. And he relates the following. One day, we received notice that we were permitted to enter to the Rebbe's room for yechidus, private audience. We can't describe the emotions, the excitement, how this impacted us to spend time with the Rebbe alone in his holy room, the Chedrei HaKodesh. My yechidus with the Rebbe took about fifteen minutes. It seems to me that no one had such a long yechidus amongst my friends. The maskir, the secretary, Rab Leibel Groner, entered a few times to check what's happening, and on every occasion, the Rebbe motioned with the hand that he shouldn't disturb, and he left the room. It all began in the first moment. When I went into the yechidus, I began making the bracha Shehecheyanu loud and slowly and with my Yemenite ac-accent. I said Baruch atah and concluded the full bracha, and on the Rebbe's face, a broad smile appeared, and the Rebbe answered Amen loudly. This was the kabbalas ponim. This was the greeting which melted my heart and

02:15 gave me the feeling that I have reached a loving father. The Rebbe began the conversation, "Are you from the Tmilim HaTeimonim, from those from Teimon, from Yemen, from Lud, Kfar Chabad?" While his smile was still on his face. And I responded, "Yes, Rebbe." At that point, I felt comfortable and like someone who is liberated, has nothing of any limitations or restrictions. I felt like a son standing for his father. The Rebbe took my note to, uh... And to be more accurate, notes, plural. There were eight pages written very tightly. And in these pages, I wrote out the story of my life from the time I became an orphan, which was around the time of my birth, till this very day. I added and pointed out to many points, issues that bothered me. The Rebbe browsed through the pages, read it quickly, and immediately began to respond on al rishon rishon on every question separately. I have no way of explaining how it was possible in a natural way to read so much material in such a short time. Bechalal, the Rebbe smiled very much during the chidus, and the Rebbe mentioned to this bachar, "Speak whatever you want." Amongst the inyanim that I mentioned in the letter was that I did not feel comfortable in a farbrengen amongst Chassidim because I don't like mashke. Mashke is liquor. And Chassidim by farbrengen, my friends pressure me I should drink l'chaim. The Rebbe also related to this matter. And the Rebbe asked what you wrote about drinking,

04:39 what is your favorite drink? I responded, "Coca-Cola, the taste of life." Uh, I don't know from where I had the strength to respond that, but maaseh shehoya kahoia, this is how it happened. I had a very special feeling of a son who reached his father, and memeilech, it was also a feature of joy and feeling very comfortable. The Rebbe laughed, and the Rebbe said, "No, you say l'chaim on Coca-Cola. And don't be angry, and don't pay attention to what others tell you. And whoever will tell you to say l'chaim on mashke, you will tell them in my name that I told you to say l'chaim on Coca-Cola." I felt a special concern and special love from the Rebbe to me, and I felt in the seventh heaven. And at that point, the Rebbe opened up his drawer, and he took out dollars. I didn't see how many. And the Rebbe added, "You are a bachar in yeshiva. You are a bachar who's studying in yeshiva, and memeilech, you don't have money to buy Coca-Cola. Here is money that you will be able to buy Coca-Cola." Leiuumen, I can't believe the Abba Sarah, the Rebbe expressed here. Leetzari, to my pain, to my agony, I didn't take it. I didn't want to take money from the Rebbe. The Rebbe responded with a smile and motioned with his hand, nu hazbikl, in a se-- in a, in a expression of displeased, and he took the dollars and placed them back in the drawer. When I went out

06:50 of the yechidus, my chaverim surrounded me, and they asked me, "What did you do so long in yechidus?" I told them about the new herut that the Rebbe told me that I can say l'chaim on Coca-Cola. And I told them that the Rebbe even wanted a fund to buy, that I should be able to buy the Coca-Cola, but I turned it down. At that point, the bacharim got together, they did a fundraising, and they bought for me Coca-Cola. And not necessary even to point out that from that day and on, nobody ever bothered me to say l'chaim on something sharp, but it was Coca-Cola on which I said l'chaim.