Joy

Rebbe Nachman says that joy is essential to our service of Hashem, as well as to our health and wellbeing.  It was one of his favorite topics to talk about, constantly striving to serve Hashem with joy, to be happy, etc.  Rabbi Arush and Rabbi Brody both continue to talk about striving to serve Hashem with joy as well.  This week I get to put this into practice an extra bit.  Saturday Night, while walking down some icy stairs in Chicago, I slipped, and before I knew it, I was flat on my back and my ankle was really sore.  So sore that I could hardly walk, and had to see a doctor.  Turns out I broke my leg, just above the ankle on the non weight bearing bone (Thank Hashem for that!)  Now, why do I mention this when talking about joy?  Because I could be all sad and depressed that I am not able to work, and am not able to do much as I used to, or I could remain upbeat, make jokes about the experience, and enjoy life with a smile on my face.  I admit this is not as big of a challenge as other people have, but for an independent guy, its still hard.  Perhaps the lesson here is that I need to recognize all the help that Hashem provides me with in my life, and be more grateful to the Ribbono Shel Olam for all that He does.