Standing By Myself With Thousands By My Side

On Sunday June 30, I officiated at a funeral. And like all of the other funerals where I've officiated, I was alone with the grave diggers. And once the grave was filled in, and the diggers left, it was just me. While this is tragic, I had a tremendous realization at that exact moment, that I wasn't alone at all.

G-d was standing with me, giving me the strength to assist Him in escorting the deceased to the Next World. This person's deceased relatives were with me, welcoming their loved one. All the deceased at Mount Richmond Cemetery were there as well, in a special section of the next world, for those who suffered in this world. All the recipients of Meis Mitzvah were there as well.

When we perform a mitzvah, we're partnering with G-d. Our doing G-d's will is a manifestation of G-d's greatness in this world. And when a mitzvah is performed, those connected with it show up for the occasion, physically or meta-physically. They want to partner in glorifying G-d's name.

It's been said before but it bears repeating. When a person is buried by the Hebrew Free Burial Association, that person had to have some special merits to ensure they were taken care of. When someone dies, it is only through the good fortune of having an experienced social work, a compassionate landlord, a perceptive public administrator, that people come to us. So when a person is lowered into the ground in this world, the next world pays attention. "Who is this special person?" "I want to escort them as well."

So while I was standing by myself, I was standing with thousands, and more importantly, with G-d, performing his work. To paraphrase Pirkei Avos, "if not HFBA, then who?"