175 —הסתגלות לסביבות חדשות וחשיפת הטוב הפנימי

B"H, 3rd day of Chanukah, 5705.

My esteemed and elevated friend, Mr. Dov Padver.

Shalom u'Vrachah!

I have inquired several times from Mr. in Zborodka regarding your situation and that of your family, and I was pleased to hear that you have settled here and that all is well with you and your entire family. Now I was happy to see your brief letter, even though you did not mention anything about yourself in it.

Your letter awakened memories of the days we were together in the city of Vichy and Nice, each of us living under circumstances we were not accustomed to. When a person is uprooted from an environment where he has become settled, until he gets used to new conditions and demands, certain lines of his inner character appear as they are—without embellishment or the masking that society demands. Often these lines reveal the hidden good within a person—good that perhaps even he himself did not know about because it was covered by layers of "worldly manners." Fortunate is he if he does not allow these qualities to disappear again even when he comes to a place of rest.

In such a state of mind—but on a much greater scale (both qualitatively and quantitatively)—a person finds himself at the time of mesirus nefesh (self-sacrifice), when hidden powers and essential strengths are revealed within him. Therefore, he is able afterward to change his life entirely. This is the connection and "measure for measure"—that for mesirus nefesh, which is contrary to one's nature, one receives a miracle—something contrary to the general order of nature.

This applies also on the national level—as happened "in those days at this time": Israel, a small nation among the nations, rose up against mighty Greece; thus, the mighty were delivered into the hands of the weak, the many into the hands of the few, etc.

With blessings for Chanukah and regards to your entire family; immediate teshuvah brings immediate redemption.
Rabbi Menachem M. Schneerson

P.S. I have instructed that some books from our publications be sent to you in a special package—they will surely interest you.
From a copy by secretariat.

Summary

Adapting to new circumstances reveals one's true inner strengths. The Rebbe teaches that just as self-sacrifice brings out hidden powers leading to miracles—as seen in Chanukah—so too can personal upheaval uncover deep goodness within us.