Bear’s friends always play and have fun together. But one day, they come to visit Bear in his cave and find that he cannot play with them. Bear is sick. What can the animals do to help Bear get better, and can one bear help his friends when they need him?
Age Group: PRESCHOOL
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generalBeing sick is part of life, and when the weather turns cold, illness “visits” almost every home. When our temperature rises we take a break from our everyday activities and withdraw into ourselves. We leave our usual circles of friends and coworkers, and sometimes we can feel lonely. When you are sick, you need help even with the smallest things.
Visiting the Sick – Bikur Holim
Jewish tradition considers the mitzvah of bikur holim to be immeasurable. In other words, it does not have any exact measurement or amount. This is because every sick person needs a different amount of help, and every visitor can help in a different way. For this reason, every person observes this mitzvah to the best of his or her ability, and it can be performed many times. The mitzvah is first mentioned in the Talmud, where it is determined that everyone, including the biggest and most-respected people, is required to visit the sick in order to ease their pain. Visiting the sick is so important that the rabbinical sages said that fulfilling this mitzvah not only helps the visitor in life in “this world” (olam haze), but will also be remembered in his life in the “next world” (olam haba) [Talmud Bavli, Nedarim, 39, page 2].
The Torah tells that when our Father Jacob was ill, hearing that his son Joseph was about to visit him made him feel better and he gave him strength to stand up: “And he told Jacob, and said: ‘Behold, thy son Joseph cometh unto thee.’ And Israel strengthened himself, and sat upon the bed.” (Jacob is also called Israel. Genesis chapter 48, verse 2)
In our book, the animals help Bear both in strengthening his body and by improving his mood. Visiting the sick can mean helping the sick person with everyday things that he or she cannot manage on their own, like eating, drinking, or taking medicine. The visit is also important for improving the patient’s mood, which contributes greatly to recovery.
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Copies Distributed:
45,000
Publishing:
כנרת
Year of Distribution:
5711 2010-2011
