What really makes a person happy in this life isn't money, or cars, or houses.
The happy and closely knit family is what makes a person happy and makes him eternal.
No matter how successful the person is in professional or business world, if he is lonely- his life is miserable.

The head of an extremely rich Canadian-Jewish family was aging and he felt soon it will be his time to give the soul back to the Lord and leave his family, his money and his life behind. He had sons who had their own families already and throughout his life he did his best to teach them to be men of virtue and use the money they made to overcome evil things and do the charity that comes out of the heart, rather than out of desire for publicity and social status, but now it was time for him to give them the final and probably one of the most important lessons in his life time, the lesson which he would watch them ponder from the above!

The death of the father and grandfather became a shock for the entire family, even though it was expected to a certain degree. The family started to gather at the old house, place which contained so many of their happy memories from the good old times, and now had their beloved "papa" laying dead and cold. The personal attorney of their father and a close friend for more than 40 years came out to greet them.

After sharing the few words of comfort he has explained them, that their dad left two testaments as separate documents and one of them was instructed to be unsealed straight after he passes away and the second one was to be open and read after the funeral is over.

This sounded somewhat strange and unusual, but the sons were so overwhelmed by the fact itself that they are about to hear what was their father's last will, that they couldn't even ask a question. They all sat down and the attorney opened the file, there was a standard form for the testaments certified by the attorney, the text was short and only contained one sentence, it read: "I want to be buried wearing the socks" period, that was it!

Being prepared to hear some sort of a moral lesson from their dad, this sounded absolutely astonishing! Not a word about anything that any person would normally want to be sharing in the will, not even a hint! Just a direct and simple instruction!

Being an observing family the heirs of a multi millionare fortune were not sure if it was allowed to bury their father according to his testament- wearing the socks. From the Torah lessons they had back in the time of school they remembered the rules that Jewish law had regarding this matter: one has to be totally naked and wrapped into a special blanket called "savan" and then put into a coffin. They've decided to see the rabbi and ask him. The answer of the rabbi was clear and direct- the testament of their father can not be fulfilled without breaking the law. There could be no excuse for breaking the rules which are many thousand of years, even if a person asked about it in his last will!

Left without the choice the sons ordered the funeral be held the way they should be and according to the law. They did feel strange, their father asked them to bury him in the socks, such a tiny little thing, and they couldn't do it, but nothing could be done!

Once the funeral was over and the people who came over not only from Canada and States but also from Israel, Europe, South America and few other places started to leave, their father's attorney asked them to gather in the study of their dad to hear the second testament, which was ordered to be unsealed and read after the funeral was over.

They all settled in the big and deep armchairs around the working table which for many years served to their father. The attorney opened up the envelope and read: "You see my dear sons, I couldn't even take the socks along with me! The money we earn in our lives, the energy we have- don't store it, thinking you are going to use it sometime later! Use it now to do the good to people and your close ones, do the charity and fight with unfairness!"

What really makes a person happy in this life isn't money, or cars, or houses. The happy and closely knit family is what makes a person happy and makes him eternal. No matter how successful the person is in professional or business world, if he is lonely- his life is miserable.

If you find yourself being tired to loneliness and fatigue of single life, remember it's all in your hands!

Everything is possible, and it's absolutely possible for you to meet your special one! G-d made a man and then made a woman right away, so we see from that a hint which is extremely important- it's not good for a man to be alone!

by Michael Mordinson more articles by this author