Dear Friend,

You may have heard of Johnny Appleseed, who traveled around the (then) western U.S. planting apple orchards and nurseries. His simple acts introduced countless apple trees to large swaths of the Midwest.

This week is framed by two major days: the 10th and the 15th of Shevat.

Monday, the 10th of Shevat, is the day that the sixth Lubavitcher rebbe, Rabbi Yosef Yitzchak Schneersohn, passed away in 1950. Exactly one year later, Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson accepted the leadership of Chabad, and set about transforming the face of world Jewry.

On this day, Chabad chassidim reflect on their relationship to the Rebbe, and how they are (or can be) doing their part to make the world a G‑dly place. But it is often hard to see how one individual, who can do only one thing at a time, can make much of a difference.

Perhaps the answer comes on Shabbat, the 15th of Shevat, which marks the end of the (Israeli) rainy season and the time when trees begin to blossom and grow fruit.

Planting a tree feels fruitless. We throw away a useful seed, and wait. But if we water, plant, prune and pray, we can be assured that blossoms and fruit will follow. And those fruit can bring yet more and more fruit.

The Chabad.org Editorial Team