“But Rebbi… What about the trip to Leipzig? The tailor? The mysterious Shabbos guest?”

R’ Yosef smiled with anticipation as he took a deep breath, readying himself to finish the story.

“Okay, R’ Berel, listen closely. This is what the Baal Shem Tov told his talmid.”

“Do you remember the first stop we made in the forest, to that mysterious man and his wife?” The Baal Shem Tov gazed penetratingly at his talmid.

“Yes, of course.”

“He is one of the hidden tzaddikim of the generation. When Mashiach arrives, he will be the first to know, and thus I paid him a special visit to have a conversation with him about certain matters.”

“Then, as you will recall, we stopped off at a stream. You know of course that everything Hashem made in this world has a special purpose. Nothing is random. Everything exists to be elevated and filled with meaning. No one had ever made a brachah over the water in that stream, and over time it has become smaller and smaller. Soon, it will be dried up forever, and I made a brachah on its water just in time.”

The Baal Shem Tov fell silent.

“But Rebbi… What about the trip to Leipzig? The tailor? The mysterious Shabbos guest?”

“All in due time…”