background

Stories & Memories of Reb Velvel Marasow

By: Eliezer Halon May 7

Simchas Torah Hafsokoh

The Rebbe's Farbrengen on the night of Simchas Torah goes until 12:00 midnight. Then there's a hafsoko for half an hour, and Hakofos start at 12:30. The Farbrengen starts off with a small crowd - who's going to have the "chutzpoh" to show their face at the beginning of the Farbrengen after The Rebbe said to go to other shuls and be mesameiach Yidden there? The ones who were there I'm sure had a good reason - a shul close-by; tried to extend Hakofos but everyone left, etc. Well, everyone rushed back to 770, not wanting to miss another moment of the Farbrengen. Either you managed to get back to your place or ... Anyway, no pit stop from when you left to go to the other Shul, until the end of the Farbrengen, and no pit stop during Hakofos - you CANNOT move, let alone get out and back in. See where I'm going with this? The only time you had was between 12:00 and 12:30 (Hakofos finished 4ish). Actually, less, because while they were (literally) throwing benches around to set up from the Farbrengen for Hakofos, if you wanted to have your place you had to be there the very moment they set it up. So you basically had 6 or 7 minutes. Well, when I went into the locker room from the beis hakovod to wash asher yotzar, I see R' Velvel laughing helplessly. I asked him what going on? He said just look at the doorway of the bathroom as a picture frame. I did and saw a picture of someone running in like ahn untergeshosener, then someone running out just as frantically with a frenzied expression. This was happening about every second and a half. We shared a few moments of helplessly unbreathing, side-splitting laughter. Absolutely, totally appropriate and fitting. Haz'man gromoh. Moshiach Now!

 
Share Your Story

 
loading Processing...