Queens Jewish Link
Connecting the Queens Jewish Community 
After an overwhelming week at work, Daniel decides to go on a nature hike to recharge. Without letting anyone know of his plans, he heads off into the mountains. As he is enjoying the view and the peaceful quiet around him, he suddenly slips and tumbles off the edge of a cliff. He plunges downwards, but somehow manages to grasp onto a branch jutting out of the cliff face. He clings to the branch for dear life, trying not to look down at the ravine below.
HaGaon HaRav Shimon Galei got up and grabbed the microphone. It was a totally spontaneous moment that left tears of emotion in the eyes of the thousands in attendance. It was in the middle of the Amud HaYomi Siyum at the Armon Hotel in Stamford. Hagaon HaRav Hillel David, shlita, had just finished speaking when suddenly, Rav Galei, grabbed the microphone and exclaimed, “Rabbosai! A siyum masechta is a time when there is a great eis ratzon in shomayim. Now is the time for all of us to daven for Klal Yisrael who are undergoing great difficulty and for all our personal tefillos as well.”
The Dirshu Convention began on Thursday afternoon with a unique seudah catered to Dirshu maggidei shiurim. More than 150 maggidei shiurim gathered at the tastefully prepared seudah as befitting kavod haTorah.
A young boy once went to the circus and was astonished when he saw a giant elephant tethered to the ground by a thin rope. Curious, he walked over to the elephant trainer and asked: “How are you holding down such a huge elephant with such a tiny rope? The rope doesn’t look very strong. This elephant could break down a brick wall; why doesn’t he break free of this tiny rope?” The trainer smiled at him and explained: “When this elephant was a baby, weighing just 250 pounds, we tied it up with this same rope. Every day he tried to break free, but he couldn’t manage to do it. He tried and tried, but to no avail. After a few months, he finally gave up, convinced that it was impossible to escape. Now, he weighs eight thousand pounds and is strong enough to easily break free of these ropes. However, in his mind, he is still chained by an unbreakable rope, so he doesn’t even try to escape.”
“This historic maamid transpiring now, in a place where history was previously made, is a maamid that continues the legacy of Torah bequeathed to us right here by the Chofetz Chaim, the Gerer Rebbe, Rav Chaim Ozer, the Chortkover Rebbe and Rav Meir Shapiro, who established the Daf HaYomi in Vienna one-hundred years ago. This is the place where Klal Yisrael came together in unity, the olam hayeshivos and the olam hachassidus joining forces to increase kavod haTorah.”
There is a story told of a man who was captured behind enemy lines during war. To his horror, he was sentenced to death by firing squad. However, the captain gave the man another option. He told him, “You can go to the firing squad tomorrow morning at 6:00 a.m., or you can choose to walk through this door.”
