Chinuch? Yeah, why not...

I spent yesterday afternoon in Brooklyn and had the privilege of davening @ a certain minyan factory in Brooklyn.

It was there that I witnessed the following:

Fervently shuckling next to me was a red-headed chassid with long, twisted, fiery peyos. His son, 3 maybe 4 years old, was sitting next to him and took advantage of the silence and fell asleep during the Amidah. I finished davening and mused about how cute this little chassid was and how different my formative years had been.

The action started with kedusha as the father grabbed the kid by his armpits and yanked him to his feet atop the chair! The father shook him awake relentlessly demanded from his young son that he answer the Holy Kedusha. After the Kedusha he let go of his limp son and the boy sank back into his slumber.

I had this huge grin on my face. I thought at that point I had figured out how Chassidishe boys rebel. I had always wondered how, if one was raised amidst Torah and Yiras Shamayim and Chassidishe Niggunim, one could go off the D. Obviously, the yetzer hara affects everyone but it needs no help of Chassidishe fathers helping it along.

Is this child going to have the proper respect in shul? He will hate shul if anything! Not to sound to psychological (full disclosure: I am a psych major) but all this child associated with this experience is the negative feelings generated by his violent arousal!

But then things took a turn for the better. We were at Bareich Alenu when the tatte of this child pulled open a black bag and pulled out a band-aid. He then proceeded to locate the tiniest of boo-boos on his son's hand and gently put it in place. Clearly this father loves his child. The little boy probably forgot about the tiny scrape that had afflicted him earlier, yet this man lovingly placed a band-aid on his hand anyway.

Whether waking his son was the best method of Chinuch I couldnt say because I am not an authority. Will this child hate shul and davening? I don't think so. The love that the father has for his son oozes out of his persona. This little boy will not remember the shaking or the angry words to pay attention but WILL remember all the little things that illustrate the unconditional love that the father has for his son.

I think this is a nice mashal for our relationship with 'ה. The Gemara in Brachos tells us that כל מה דרחמנא עבד לטב עבד. Everything Hashem does is good. Not that it is an easy עבודה.