Many years ago there were not as many conveniences for the typical household as there are today. An easy everyday activity, such as laundry, required a trip down to the local river carrying baskets full of dirty clothing, and a washing board.
Things were not different for the Himmelwasserstein family. Mrs. H. was a very busy woman, with all that washing and other ‘easy’ household tasks. Maybe that is why she wasn’t always aware of what little Moishy was doing at all times. That was probably a part of it. Though I am sure Moishy would have managed some of his mischief even if he was born into a family of affluence, and his mother had no need to be busy with such mundane chores. But then again affluent mothers are known to hire staff to perform their household duties, childcare included, but never mind.
Moishy H. was a very busy little boy. He had the energy of a frisky kitten that had been indoors all winter and was let out into the garden for the first time. He had brains on par with the finest of scholars of his generation. He also had the heart of a giant teddy bear – if giant teddy bears could have hearts. The energy, the brains, and the heart combined to create the fun loving, mischievous, brilliant boy that was Moishy H. Some just considered him a walking menace, affectionately of course.
This specific mischievous maaseh took place when our Moishy was about nine years old. It was that time of year when the breeze is beginning to turn into a wind, and the colorful leaves that have decorated the trees for many a week are now decorating all the surfaces beneath. Moishy was walking to the tailor. Officially his errand was to inquire after the new Shabbos pants that had been commissioned for Chezky, the bar-mitzva Bachur. Moishy’s unofficial task was …well it was unclear at this time what it was, but he knew it would be fun, exciting, and maybe… a bit mischievous. You see, Moishy always had an unofficial task, and it was not always well thought out.
Moishy liked Shlomo the Tailor. He was a very quiet man with a very calm demeanor. His ability to concentrate under any circumstance was legendary, as was his attention to detail. Shlomo was very precise in his work; from the measurements to the final stitch. As Moishy half ran and half skipped, and half jumped – wait that is too many halves, well never mind. As Moishy made his way to the Shlomo’s home he was thinking about the tailor, and how serious he was. At least that was Moishy’s perception. The caring young boy thought of- what was in his mind- a great idea. He would bring something to Shlomo to cheer him up, make him smile, and bring some happiness into his life. The something that he brought would have to be special, and Moishy knew just what it had to be. He stopped short, practically running down old Mrs.Klein. Moishy called a quick apology over his shoulder as he changed directions, and headed for the stream.
The stream was a great place, one of Moishy’s favorites. He loved to watch the water flow by and listen to the sound it made as it bubbled over stones and pebbles on its way to the next town. Moishy always imagined that the stream carried the news from town to town, and the sound was the stream telling him what had just happened two towns over. Moishy also liked to watch, follow, and catch any living creature that was present at the stream. Ants, spiders, dragonflys, tadpoles, lizards, salamanders, toads, mice – he liked them all.
Moishy began his search. He knew what he was looking for, and it wasn’t always easy to find. As the weather was getting cold this specific species was harder and harder to find. But Moishy just knew that this was just what tailor needed to bring some cheer into his life. He began the hunt at the water’s edge. At the part near the big tree there was a small runoff that created a tiny pond at the river edge. He hunched down quietly and held as still as he could, alert and aware of any small movement that might hint to the whereabouts of his prey.
As Moishy’s body was still, his brain was still in high gear, and he began to wonder, as he was sometimes wont to do. He would wonder about all kinds of things, so varied and unconnected that sometimes even he wondered what made him think of any one of his specific thoughts. It was right in the middle of one of these thoughts- why children’s age order is clear by their heights, and adults’ ages are not – when he thought he saw something move. Moishy quietly and slowly separated the blades of grass near where he saw the movement...and there it was a ‘tiny frog’! All the children called them tiny frogs, as opposed to the Professor who called them ‘European Tree Frogs’. The Professor’s real name was Mr. Green and he had moved here from the big city before Moishy was born. He said that the big city had gotten far too crowded to allow for clear thinking. He knew a lot about a lot of things. He had a lot of things to think about.
Moishy was able to quickly and expertly catch the tiny frog in his hands. He peeked into the cracks between his fingers. A tremendous smile lit up his face. Yes, this was definitely the best thing to bring to Shlomo the tailor. The tiny frog would do the trick. Moishy gently cupped the frog in his hand and headed back to the main road.
Quite pleased with himself, Moishy hurried to deliver his gift to Shlomo the tailor, practically forgetting the errand that he had set out on originally. Moishy knocked on the door as he opened it, ran inside and breathlessly made his way to the workroom at the back. Shlomo the tailor was engrossed in his work, seemingly undisturbed by the whirlwind that had just entered his tranquil environment. In his haste Moishy did not notice the basket of threads on the ground, and proceeded to kick it over and send all the colorful bobbins rolling in every direction. As he lost his balance, Moishy opened his hand to catch on to the nearby table, and that is how the tiny gift came to be free and hopping amongst the spilled bobbins covering the floor of the Shlomo’s Tailor Shop. Moishy’s frantic cries had no impact on Shlomo’s concentration, as a matter of fact, he had yet to acknowledge Moishy’s presence.
Moishy dove under the table in pursuit of his tiny frog, kicking the thread that crossed his path. He would not be deterred – Shlomo MUST have his tiny frog. Bedlam ensued as thread was pushed, kicked, and tripped over. The tangled mess began to grow as Moishy and the tiny frog continued to play ‘hide and seek’ and ‘tag’ alternately. Miraculously, throughout the ruckus Shlomo continued working intently on his sewing.
After several minutes of intense pursuit, Moishy found purchase. He rose victoriously with his hand closed around the tiny frog and ran right up to Shlomo. At just that precise moment Shlomo tied off his last stitch and looked up to face Moishy. A large smile spread across his face.
“Oh, Moishy. You are right on time. I just finished Chesky’s pants. Let me just fold them up for you and you can bring them home to your mother.”
“Well, sir, I brought you, sir, a present to cheer you up!” and Moishy slowly opened his hand to reveal the tiny frog that he had worked so hard to recapture over the past couple of minutes.
Shlomo looked from the frog to the floor and back again. Not completely sure as to what had just taken place, of one thing he was certain, and that was the smile on little Moishy’s face.
“Why thank you Moishy! I used to catch these little guys when I was about your age.” As Shlomo smiled, Moishy felt accomplished. “I wouldn’t want to lose him in here, so do you think you could keep him for me in your house?”
Moishy beamed. “Sure, sir” and he spun around and ran out the door.
“Wait! You forgot the pants!”, but Shlomo was too late, Moishy was long gone.
Shlomo shook his head and smiled, and began gathering up and untangling all the thread at his feet. It brought back memories of a much younger Shlomo, whose antics were not much different that those of little Moishy H.
