Notes About The Poem
In honor of the 25th yahrtzeit (anniversary) of the Lubavitcher Rebbe's death, I heard this story from Rabbi Moshe Soloveitchik, himself a scion of a Rabbinic dynasty.
The Eyes Have It
Here is the tale of a Jewish hardware-store man
who guards the flame of his faith as best he can
in a remote corner of the Upper Midwest
where the count of practicing Jews is two at best
Our protagonist travels East, to Crown Heights, New York
where Jews never eat cheeseburgers, shrimp or pork
Among his brethren, so happy, he seeks out a blessing
from the great Rebbe of Lubavitch, a man unprepossessing
The line at the Rebbe's is really quite long
for so many come to see him, to help right their wrongs
When the hardware-store's man turn finally comes
he puffs out his chest, and he bangs his own drum
Rebbe, he boasts, I'm from a tiny hamlet in the Midwest
where my wife and I are the only Jews who pass all the tests
We keep strictly kosher, keep the Sabbath; we never do stray
As for our fellow Jews there, we can only cry and pray
The Rebbe nods and smiles, but before wishing him good-day
says, And I see you're determined to keep things that way!
Shaken, the hardware-store man is rendered speechless
He understands the great Rebbe has so much to teach us...
For the pupils of the Rebbe's eyes, gleaming pinpoints of coal
~ Stare directly and deeply, into every man's soul
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