Let There Be Rain

When Hashem created the world, He would not send the rains until there was a person on this earth who would appreciate this gift and and be grateful for it. Adam prayed for rain. It fell. Trees and vegetation grew. And Adam thanked Hashem. It was necessary, as soon as man was created, to teach him the lesson of gratitude — because gratitude makes all the difference between a life that is happy and fulfilling, and one that is sad and bitter. In his three decades of teaching, his pioneering work in founding and directing Ohr Naavah, and his lectures heard around the globe, Rabbi Zechariah Wallerstein has met, spoken with, and counseled thousands of men and women. He heard their stories, discussed their challenges, and helped them find solutions to their problems. And he realized that the root of many of our problems, both personal and societal, come from one root cause — a lack of hakaras hatov, of gratitude. Being grateful for our blessings, for favors bestowed on us by others or by Has