An expression that I eschew with extreme prejudice is: "I will never forget <some seemingly important event>" The reason I recoil from this expression is, of course: I haven't the slightest idea what I may or may not forget. Goodness! I have forgotten so many things that at the time seemed so unforgettable.
That being said, when the "something" causes a change in how one conducts his life, then that "something" certainly can be said to be unforgettable. Even if one were to lose the ability to recall the details -- or even the occurrence -- of the original event; the change is engendered in one's journey through this world and trajectory through the next. Nonetheless, such an event is intrinsically unforgettable. I herein relay two (which will become three) such experiences where the rosh yeshiva, R' Chaim Dov Keller, זכר צדיק לברכה, changed the trajectory of my life.
Every event in life is actually a mussar lesson.
For a couple of years after we moved to Chicago, I was able to attend a shiur on motzei Shabbos that the rosh yeshiva gave at his home on Sha'arei T'shuva. R' Keller told us what an incredible ba'alas mussar his bubbie was. She was once rending and jarring up schmaltz, which is a very time consuming process. As a young boy, the future rosh yeshiva was helping... but one of the jars slipped out of his hand. He was petrified into motionlessness watching his bubbie's hard work spilling onto the floor. Suddenly his bubbie said, "Don't just stand there; save what you can!" The rosh yeshiva looked at us and said, "Do you see? She taught me to not waste time worrying about things you can't change, but move forward and act!"
Personally, I don't know if his bubbie was a ba'alas mussar or just an ordinary Yiddishe bubbie. What struck me and what changed my outlook was simply how the rosh yeshiva looked at every situation as a life lesson. Besides whatever was happening, there is a reason it is happening. The rosh yeshiva would look for and learn from each and every event; nothing was too mundane. That is a conduct that I have been working to emulate since that night.
The wording of Chazal is precise; take that seriously and you will reap invaluable reward.
I heard this while attending a high school graduation at Telshe Yeshiva. (The rosh yeshiva prefaced his remarks by saying this was the high school graduation; there is no such thing as graduating from yeshiva.) The rosh yeshiva contrasted two Chazals. First: A person doesn't leave this world with half his desires fulfilled. Two: When a person has 100, he wants 200; when he has 200, he wants 400. Said R' Keller (and I quote): "I am not so good at math, but even I know that 100 is half of 200 and 200 is half of 400." (Editor's note: The rosh yeshiva was, of course, quite good at math; as demonstrated by any his shiurim on masechta Eruvin!) The rosh yeshiva answered the contradiction by noting that what a person has in his pocket is not part of his calculation. When he has 100 in his pocket he doesn't want 100 more, he wants 200! When a person has 200 in his pocket, he doesn't want 200 more, he wants 400!
The lesson the rosh yeshiva was teaching us was not lost on me. Nonetheless, I was utterly amazed by how the lesson was derived. Simply by taking Chazal at their word -- their precise and exacting wording -- and resolving even the seemingly most minute contradiction. When I first heard the rosh yeshiva say, "I am not so good at match, but even I know 100 is half of 200..."; I remember thinking: "oh please... what's the difference between 100 out of 200 and "not even half". I haven't made that mistake again; not in underestimating the precision of Chazals wording and not in underestimating the insights or our g'dolim.
Davening is a conversation with HaShem, the King -- Seriously
I had only planned to write about those two interactions that I merited to have with the rosh yeshiva, z"tzl; but as I was writing, I remembered yet another story. The rosh yeshiva was speaking before the Yamim Nora'im at Adas Yeshurun (before it moved across the street). R' Keller was talking about the experience of davening and noted that if one was meeting the president of the United States, he would most certainly not start crooning, "Oh-oh-oh. Pres-pres-PRESIDENT Roo-oo-oo-Oo-OO-oo-oo-sevel-vel-vel-vel-VELLLLL President Roosevelt!"
I don't know why the rosh yeshiva choose President Roosevelt, but כך היה. I wanted to add this one because I know that often when I am davening, I will catch myself and adjust my stance, posture, tone, etc, to be more in line with actually standing in front of an important person with him one has a serious meeting. It was only while writing this TftD that I remembered sitting in that shiur.
And that's really why I wanted to write down a few of my memories of the rosh yeshiva. I certainly learned much from his words and thoughts, but I learned as much from hearing/seeing/experiencing first hand a shiur, vort, and even simple conversations with the rosh yeshiva. I say with humility and sincerity, I will never forget R' Chaim Dov Keller, זכר צדיק לברכה.
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