here it is:
At the beginning of the week, 5 yeshiva bochurim from Yeshivas Ateret Yisrael were injured in a car accident. They were on the way for some R&R down south by the Dead Sea. Driving along the Highway 90, the car flipped over. The driver was critically injured, and the four passengers were injured as well, albeit only light injuries. The driver was whisked away to Hadassah Ein Kerem where he went straight into surgery, and is still fighting for his life (Chizkiyahu Aryeh Leib ben Tova, if you wish to daven for him)..
The story, as related by one of the other passengers, is that as they were driving down the curvy road toward Ein Bokek, they were all talking about a former fellow student in the yeshiva. They were making fun of him and talking about him - only the finest lashon ha'ra.
The driver had just put an end to the conversation, saying that it is not appropriate to talk about the fellow like that, and when they get back they would have to ask his forgiveness.
Moments later, everything flipped - on one of the sharp curves the driver lost control of the car, ended up being trapped in the flipped car and was in critical condition.
As soon as the passengers were released from the hospital after being treated for their light injuries they went to the victim of their lashon ha'ra, concerned there might be a "kpeida" on them and the driver, and asked his forgiveness.
The fellow gave his forgiveness immediately, saying in front of them 3 times that all is forgiven, and then he gathered a minyan of 10 people and said it before them as well and davened for his recovery..
Now that is immediate justice, if I have ever heard of any... except for the fact that he is the one who stopped the lashon ha'ra, so why is he the one that was punished?
lots of lessons here:
- don't leave yeshiva for some vacation mid-zman
- don't talk lashon ha'ra
- drive safely
- pay attention to the road, especially on a windy, curvy road
- drive safely, no, that cannot be repeated enough
either way, refuah shleima
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