A House With No Closed Doors

Reb Itzikel's hoif hardly existed, in the way it looked or in the way people came to the Rebbe. His gabbai, Reb Chaim Honig, recalls an old and shabby house with a total open-house policy. The Rebbe's bedroom, kitchen and beis medrash were on one floor, and everyone was welcome to walk in at any time.

That warmth was so natural, Reb Chaim says, that an elderly Yid who was not even one of the chassidim once saw the Rebbe washing for bread and slapped him on the back. "Have a good appetite, Rebbe," he said. Reb Chaim adds that he can hardly picture such a scene with any Rebbe today.

Hundreds of people came to consult the Rebbe, yet getting in to see him was easy. People walked into his room at any hour, and the door was never allowed to be shut. He longed to be available to every Yid who sought him. The chassidim pushed the door wide open and handed him their kvittelach. One man hurried in and asked that his kvittel be read quickly, because he had to travel.

If Reb Chaim closed the door to give the Rebbe a little privacy, the Rebbe would open it again and say sharply, "We don't close doors."