Yakov Rybalov
Part 2, December 2024 - Exodus Issue 266
When I arrived in Toronto, I started going from one shoe workshop to another, but no one wanted to teach me. Finally, I managed to find one workshop where the shoemaker said: "I won't teach you, but you can work for free." Each day, I came to work before him and left with him. One day, he had to leave for the whole day, and he asked me to replace him. When he returned, I put a large sum of money on the table. He asked: "Did you put your money here too?" I answered: "No, this is what I earned." After that, he often left me to work in the workshop. Soon I began to look for a place for my own workshop. I found a place in a half-empty shopping center owned by a Ukrainian. After a short time, I began to have a line of clients. One day, the owner of the mall, noticing the line forming in front of my workshop, said: "You got yourself a good business for nothing. I am raising your rent." I replied that the amount was written in the lease agreement. He looked at the door of the workshop and, pointing to the mezuzah, asked: “What is this?” I answered: “A mezuzah.” He shouted: “Take it off right now!” I answered: “I won’t take it off!” “Then I won’t renew your lease,” he threatened and, after five years of work, he kicked me out.
I was very upset that I had to start all over again from scratch. But we never know what G‑d’s plans are.
I decided that I no longer wanted to work from morning until night, but would prefer to become a manager, giving others the opportunity to work. At that moment, I had nothing but faith in G‑d’s protection. With high spirits, I started going around shopping centers. Once, at Metro, I approached the deputy president of the chain. He agreed to open my workshop for a trial period. After some time, he offered me to open additional workshops in their stores. I asked: “What caused such favor towards me?” He replied, "We've been watching you and we've found that while you're fixing people’s shoes, they are shopping in the store and buying our products." So I opened four more workshops in the Metro chain. A similar situation was repeated in other centers: Loblaws, Superstore, and Walmart.
Over time, I expanded the range of services, and my workshops turned into a kind of service center. In addition to shoe repair, we made keys, sold shoe care products, lottery tickets, took passport photos, repaired watches and clothing. We even accepted orders for making portraits from photographs.
One day, I was offered to sell one of my workshops. The buyer did not bargain. It turned out to be profitable, and I decided to sell all my workshops.
After that, I applied for a pension, settled down in front of the TV and almost never left the house, stopping only to look in the refrigerator. One day, looking at myself in the mirror, I asked myself a question: "Yashka, do you like yourself?" The answer was no. I realized that I had to take care of myself and thought about how to change my life.
I started going to the gym, lost 15 kilograms and started thinking about what I really wanted from life. As a result, I came to an important conclusion: the world and people are ruled by the Almighty.
How did your path to Judaism begin?
In the Soviet Union, I did not know the most basic concepts like Rosh Hashanah, keeping kosher, and observing Shabbat. But I always had a strong faith in G‑d. And in Canada, when I had access to information, this faith grew in me. I became interested in Jewish tradition, attended seminars on Judaism, went to Rabbi Zaltzman’s Tanya classes, began to put on Tefillin daily, pray, read the Torah and the Psalms of King David.
My life was filled with Jewish light, spirituality and warmth. Every day I give thanks to the Almighty for everything He has given me, for allowing me to feel harmony with Him and with myself.
I want to tell you about how lucky I was to see the Rebbe. I had always dreamed about this, and one day I decided to go to New York. I visited the 770 (Chabad World Headquarters and the Rebbe’s synagogue) and, among thousands of worshipers, I saw the Rebbe. I was overcome with awe and a feeling that cannot be expressed in words. I am happy that this event happened in my life. After that, when the Rebbe passed away in the physical world, I often get on the bus and go to New York to go the Ohel. I write him a letter, asking him to pray for me before the Almighty. And I always get results! Often, on the anniversary of 3 Tammuz, I go to the Rebbe to ask him for a blessing. On these days, I visit the house where the Rebbe lived, his synagogue, and walk the streets he walked.
How would you like to conclude our conversation?
When, after my 120 years, I appear before the Heavenly Court and they ask me: “What do you want to say to the Almighty?”, I will answer: “Thank you, thank you, thank you for the happy fate that He gave me!”
