The Greeting from Heaven
Abaye was puzzled that a simple bloodletter received a greeting from Heaven every day while he received one only on Erev Shabbos, until he learned how that man lived.
It is told that a greeting came down from the yeshiva on high every Erev Shabbos to Abaye. Yet a man named Abba, a bloodletter (a healer who let blood to cure the sick), received such a greeting every single day. Abaye was troubled. What did this simple man do that he did not? He was told: You could not do what he does.
Abba's ways were indeed special. He treated men and women separately, and he made a special garment for women so that he would never see them uncovered. Payment was dropped into a box in a hidden corner, so that anyone who could pay put money in and anyone who could not was never shamed. When a talmid chacham came to him, Abba took nothing. Instead he pressed money into his hand and said: Go buy food to regain your strength.
Abaye sent two sages to see for themselves. Abba fed them, gave them drink and spread rugs for them to sleep on. In the morning they rolled up the rugs, took them to the market and asked him what they were worth. He named a price. Perhaps they are worth more, they said. That is what I paid, he answered. They admitted that the rugs were his and asked what he had thought of them. He said he assumed they had suddenly needed money to redeem captives and were too embarrassed to ask. When they offered the rugs back, he refused. From the moment he noticed they were gone, he had given them to tzedakah in his heart.
The great Rosh Yeshiva learned from the bloodletter that Heaven treasures quiet kindness and the protection of another person's dignity.
Source: Gemara, Taanis 21b–22a (Talmud Bavli); English: The William Davidson Talmud (Koren–Steinsaltz translation), Taanis 21b–22a.
Abba the bloodletter's secret was that no one ever left his door embarrassed. Look for one way this week to help someone without making them feel like a receiver. Pay for a friend's coffee before they reach the counter, leave groceries without a note, or tell someone who owes you a small sum that it is already taken care of. When you give, let the other person keep their dignity.