The Talmud teaches us that the rewards given for various Mitzvot are often not the Mitzvot themselves, but rather something else that is hidden behind the scenes within the Mitzvah we perform. For example, the reward for attending a wedding is not the attendance of the wedding itself, but rather, reward is given only when one brings happiness to the bride and the groom.
One should speak well of the bride and groom. Praise them for who they are and for who they have become! Wish them well. Imagine that?! And we thought a wedding was all about the Scotch, the steaks and the pudding!
Our page in our lesson teaches us about the importance of the Minchah (afternoon) prayer… the morning prayer… and the evening prayer! They are all important. We learn some valuable lessons from some pieces of Aggadata (the story parts) of the Gemara in our lesson. We learn about some difficulties that the poor man must deal with – notably the embarrassment that he/she feels when having to ask and receive charity. But it shouldn’t be that way.
There is really a constant give and take in this world. We never know what life brings us and we should remain humble. Someone in need today, may well be the same person to give to the other the next day! For some reason, God has set up the world in this way. But it takes real humility on the part of the giver (who has the means) to be able to give without causing undue embarrassment to the poor person.
