Excerpts from "On Cab Drivers, Shopkeepers and Strangers," Feldheim Publication.
After 25 years of living in Israel, the unbelievable stories that are constantly taking place here still never cease to amaze me. It's all a matter of keeping your eyes open. I guess that's part of the miracle of the Jews' return to our Land … the unreal becoming natural.
NOW, THAT'S SERVICE
My friend Faigy E. travels to work each day by bus: it's about a forty-five minute ride from her home. During rush hour the bus is always stuffed with people in a hurry - and the traffic on the streets is awesome.
Yesterday morning, a very, very old man wobbled up to the bus. The harried bus driver waited patiently for him to climb up the steps one by one, and the first seat was quickly vacated so that the old man could sit down. When he was settled, the bus driver quickly closed the doors, and zoomed away.
Faigy was sitting close by, and overheard the very old man explain to the bus driver that he had to go to the local clinic for some tests. He asked the bus driver to tell him where to get off in order to get to the clinic.
Now, the clinic is not located on the main street where the bus line runs. In fact, it is two blocks off to the right of the main street. Faigy was wondering how long it would take that poor old man to walk those two long blocks, when the bus driver stopped at a red light.
Turning around in his seat to face all the passengers on his crowded bus, he called out, "Does anyone have any objection if I drive this man to the clinic?"
No one objected.
And so the entire Egged bus, stuffed full of passengers all rushing to get to their jobs on time, left the regular bus route. And, two blocks later, the doors opened to out the little old man - at the clinic entrance.
I'M NOT TAKING ANY MONEY FROM THAT LADY!
My friend Arlene H. is the real, 100 percent tzadekes [righteous] type who does chessed [acts of kindness] 18 hours per day.
One of the many types of kind deeds that Arlene does is helping poor families who need food: she collects money for them and pre-pays the butcher so that they can walk in with dignity and just pick up "their" chickens; she leaves sums of money at the greengrocer so that other families can get especially nice fruits for Shabbat for their children; she periodically pays off a food bill in the makolet (a small neighborhood grocery story) for a family that is having a particularly hard time that month.
Arlene has a lot of contact with an organization called Yad Eliezer, which distributes food baskets to thousands of needy families each month. These are boxes filled with canned goods, bottles of oil, and other staples. All of these Yad Elieer families are fine Jewish families which have been "checked out" extensively by Yad Eliezer before being added to their list of monthly recipients.
Since I know that Arlene often helps families to get on the Yad Eliezer list, I was only mildly surprised when she told me that she was picking up the cartons of food, as she does every month, for two families who she knows cannot get the food boxes by themselves: Family X. has many, many small children and a "difficult husband" with emotional problems who will not and/or cannot get the food boxes, and Family Y. consists of a divorcee with serious health problems and her several small children, with no other family to help her carry the heavy boxes of food.
Since both families live very far from the Yad Eliezer food-distribution point, Arlene's son, who has a car, picks up the cartons of food with Arlene each month, and then delivers them to the homes of these two families, on the other side of town.
Last month Arlene's son had an important meeting and thus could only come hours after the food-distribution point closed. So Arlene decided she would go by herself to pick up the food, and her son would come to her home later that afternoon to pick up and then deliver the food packages.
But the cartons, filled with a month's supply of bottles of oil, packages of sugar and flour, and large-sized cans of olives, pickles, and various other food items, were too heavy for Arlene to carry. So she called a cab, and a nice man, a stranger walking past the food-distribution point, helped her shlep the heavy cartons to the curb.
Soon the cab arrived, complete with an undershirt-and-earring-wearing driver. Instead of kvetching about the large number of boxes, and/or demanding additional fare money for them which is the cab driver's legitimate right according to the law, the cab driver merely lugged the many, heavy cartons into his cab.
As they were speeding along, the cab driver asked Arlene why and where she was taking all of this food.
Arlene explained that the food was for two large families who didn't have husbands in the home who could pick up the food for them, and she told him a little about Yad Eliezer and the two families.
Upon arrival at her apartment complex, Arlene realized that she didn't have enough money to pay the cab driver, so she ran upstairs to her apartment to get more money. In the meantime, the cab driver expended quite a bit of effort unpacking the heavy food cartons from his cab.
To Arlene's surprise and delight, as she descended the steps in her apartment building, she saw that the cab driver had even lugged all of the heavy boxes into the entranceway of her apartment house, which is quite a distance from the curb.
However, when she returned to the street where the cab had been parked so that she could pay and thank the driver, neither the cab nor the cab driver were anywhere to be seen.
Arlene returned to her home and immediately called the cab company. (No, there was no fear in leaving the food cartons downstairs in the building's lobby until her son would arrive.) Arlene gave the taxi-cab dispenser her address and explained that the cab she had taken had left without her having paid the driver.
On the phone Arlene overheard the dispatcher contact the cab driver and say to him, "Yaakov, the lady says that you forgot to get your cab-fare money from her."
Still on the open line, Arlene also overheard what the cab driver's response to the dispatcher was; the cab driver, who had never seen Arlene before in his life, and who had never previously heard of Yad Eliezer nor of all the chessed that they do.
Over the phone, Arlene heard the cab driver say to the dispatcher: "I'm not taking any money from that lady! Tell her to give it to tzedaka [charity].
A REGULAR BUS TRIP
This story took place on the #11 bus from Ramat Shlomo neighborhood of Jerusalem.
A friend, Miriam L., was one of the first passengers on the bus that day since she lives near the first bus stop of the #11 route. She thus was able to get the seat right behind the bus driver - the perfect seat for seeing and hearing much of what goes on in a bus…
After traveling past only a few bus stops, a little boy climbed onto the bus and sat down across the aisle from Miriam - i.e. in easy view of both my friend and the bus driver.
Two or three bus stops later, this little boy suddenly burst into tears. And, as the bus was slowly meandering through the residential streets, he continued to cry and cry and cry.
By the next bus stop, the driver turned around in his seat, and asked the little boy, "Why are you crying so hard? What is wrong?"
The sobbing little boy answered that he had been given very specific directions by his mother regarding when he should get off the bus, which way he should walk, and how to get to where he was supposed to go. But he no longer remembered anymore what his mother had said to do or where he was supposed to get off the bus.
Without a word to anyone, or a comment of any kind, the bus driver turned the entire bus around and returned to the child's home. He then opened the bus's doors and told the little boy to hurry and ask his mother for directions again, and then to hurry back.
Meanwhile the bus driver again turned his (big city) bus around in order to be heading in the right direction when the child returned. He then proceeded to explain the whole story to his perplexed passengers.
Of course, being Israel, no one complained or protested this disruption in the regular scheduling of public transportation. Everyone just waited for the little boy to come back to the bus and climb aboard.
Which he soon did.
And then the bus just drove off again, continuing on its regular route.
NINE SHEKEL'S WORTH
Some daily-life experiences are big and momentous. Others are seemingly small and inconsequential. But somehow, in Israel, no daily-life experience is insignificant.
My son-in-law's brother-in-law, Pinchas, told us about this "little thing" a few weeks ago….
Several years ago a small, fresh squeezed juice stand opened in the Geula neighborhood of Jerusalem. By small, I mean that there is a counter, a carrot juicer, a squeezer that makes fresh orange or grapefruit juice, a blender, a napkin holder, and a cash register - and space for one person to squeeze by.
Pinchas, who teaches nearby, goes there every day for a glass of freshly squeezed juice. Every Sunday through Friday, he buys the medium-sized glass, which currently costs nine shekels (approx. $2). The smaller-sized glass of freshly squeezed juice costs eight shekels, and the largest-sized glass costs ten shekels.
But there is one small complication. Pinchas likes his juice very, very cold.
When he first started going to this small fresh-juice stand, he used to always ask the man behind the counter to put a lot of ice into his glass. Each of the two men working there had a different system for doing this. (Pinchas has since realized that one of the men is the owner of the juice stand, and the other man is his employee.)
Without ever a word or a sign of any type from Pinchas that he expects anything other than some ice added into his nine-shekel glass of juice, the employee, when he is there, invariably gives Pinchas a nine-shekel glass of juice, tells him to drink a little bit of it, and then asks for the glass back. The employee then adds ice to Pinchas' nine-shekel glass of juice.
When the owner of the juice stand is working, on the other hand, he has a different system to ensure that Pinchas is getting his full nine-shekels' worth of juice. The owner fills up a nine-shekel-sized glass with the fresh juice, then pours the whole thing into a ten-shekel-sized glass. Only then does the owner add the ice to the larger glass.
With the passage of time, Pinchas has become a steady customer. Which means that, by now, he doesn't even have to ask for ice. Both the owner of the juice stand as well as his employee recognize and remember that Pinchas likes his juice very cold.
So now, when Pinchas comes into the store, both owner and employee automatically give him his juice with a lot of ice, though each worker uses his own system to ensure that Pinchas is getting his money's worth of juice. Pinchas is always amazed how both put kindness and honesty (beyond the letter of the law) before profit, for neither is obligated to subsidize his desire for ice.
At a superficial glance these are just average people, doing small things in their everyday life. But, even if these acts appear to be small, they most certainly are not inconsequential. I pray that I will always be as careful with money matters and all questions of honesty as those two men are.
What a People, and what a country!
In celebration on Yom HaAtzmaut, share with readers in the comment section below a special "Only in Israel" story that happened to you.
(42) Benjamin, December 4, 2007 12:36 AM
A young mother was at the supermarket near my house with a child, and she was having some trouble with her groceries. I was very tired that day, so I barely even noticed her...
Suddenly, out of nowhere, comes an old lady, reminds me of my bubbe, I have never seen her before in my life, and smacks my head
"Go help that lady! What are the youth of today becoming, ay..."
She made my day!
(41) Audrey Rosenthal, April 29, 2006 12:00 AM
Thoroughly enjoyed reading your article
So, so good to hear of such "small" kindnesses. So rare to find in the U.S.; spurs me to watch for them; spurs me to extend them. (Spurs me to want to visit Israel!) Thank you for writing.
(40) manuel saucedo Jr., August 22, 2005 12:00 AM
Just keeping in touch, with hebrews!
Shalom !!!
Keep the peace and harmony. Looking forward to living over in Israel some day.
Thank you!
(39) Anonymous, June 15, 2005 12:00 AM
A heart warming and wonderful article!!
AND, You're correct--- Only in Israel!!!
(38) Anonymous, May 22, 2005 12:00 AM
Great stories!
These stories are so inspiring! Please publish more.
(37) Terry, May 18, 2005 12:00 AM
Only in Israel
Wonderful stories of our wonderful people in Israel. Wish the world would hear these nice stories more often from the world in Israel, instead of the horrendous stories that the media portraits of the jewish people and Israel. Let's focus on sending them to the media often! Let them hear from us!
(36) Gemma, May 17, 2005 12:00 AM
I LOVE THESE STORIES!
Please print more of these stories. They are great, more articles like this and daily life in Israel should be written about to inspire us all!
(35) Anonymous, May 16, 2005 12:00 AM
Just reading thses notes made me feel so good even though I do not have the privilege of living in Israel.
(34) Anonymous, May 16, 2005 12:00 AM
Beautiful stories, thank you.
Beautiful stories, thank you. A nice change from all the negative news out of Israel.
(33) miriam adahan, May 16, 2005 12:00 AM
very inspiring!
(32) Brad, May 16, 2005 12:00 AM
These stories happen every day
I have been living in Israel for almost a year on this trip, and I can say that these stories happen all the time here! In fact, I would have to have to sit down and really spend some time to try and remember all of them, but here are just a couple.
Last summer I was living in the small town of Arad in the Negev. Arad has a tiny bus station, just a few loading platforms surrounded by a big field of dirt. To get to most places, you need to take a 40 minute bus ride to Beersheva and get another bus there, but they do have some direct buses to Tel Aviv and a direct bus to Yerushalaim on Friday morning.
I needed to get to Tel Aviv, so I found out when the bus was leaving and walked over to the bus station. As I was approaching the bus station, I saw a bus turning out of the bus station, so I started running as fast as I could to catch the bus, knowing the next bus to Tel Aviv would not be for another few hours. I caught the bus just as it was making its way out of the station. When the driver opened the door to let me on, I asked "Tel Aviv?" He said "No, the Tel Aviv bus just left. But get on." Not knowing what else to do, I climbed on the bus. I figured maybe he meant I should just take this bus to Beersheva and catch another bus from there. But as I stood there at the front of the bus, the driver said "Hold on," and we started whizzing down the street as he put the pedal to the metal. I didn't really know what was going on, why he was driving so fast, and why he hadn't asked me to pay yet. But soon I saw what he was doing -- he was trying to catch up to the other bus! After about 3 or 4 bus stops at top speed, we finally did catch up to the other bus at a bus stop, and the driver honked his horn until the other driver stopped. Then he stopped and opened the door and let me run off to get on the other bus.
More recently, I went to the Biblical Zoo here in Yerushalaim during Chol HaMoed Pesach. Seeing as it was so crowded full of families waiting to see the animals, my friend and I decided we would go someplace else, so we set off walking towards the mall, the Kanyon Malcha. After a while, though, I realized we weren't so close. Seeing a family with young kids sitting in their parked car on the side of the road, I asked them if they knew how to get to the mall. "It's pretty far," the man answered me in English. "Do you have a car?" he asked me. "No, we were going to walk," I told him. "Climb in, we'll take you there." The man's wife climbed into the back seat, and my friend and I got in. It turns out this young couple with their three young kids had come in from Haifa and had just come from the zoo. They were very friendly and we had a nice chat. The kids told us about the animals they saw that day. A few minutes later, they dropped us off in front of the mall and we wished each other a chag sameach.
What a country! What a people!
(31) CarolynDow, May 15, 2005 12:00 AM
thank you for your stories of special kindnesses in Israel. When I was with Volunteers for Israel a couple of years ago, my roommate needed to go off base to a bank. When we got to the gate, we asked some of the soldiers for directions. One young lady, not content with just giving us directions, offered to lead us to our destination. We had a wonderful time visiting and I learned that she was almost completely deaf, and had earned the right to become a commissioned officer. I will never forget her! Yes, only in Israel!
Carolyn Dow
(30) Bree Daniels, May 14, 2005 12:00 AM
GREAT! Only In Israel!
I LOVVVED these stories! They even made me cry because of such Great kindness (chesed) in the "small" things of Life. PLZ send out more of these stories more frequently!
(29) Lynn Wuytowicz, May 14, 2005 12:00 AM
Faithful Provider
While spending time in Jerusalem last spring, I was propositioned by one of the cab driver's just inside the Dung Gate of the Old City. "I'll take you on a tour of the Mount of Olives, and show you around", he said. Having been warned not to go with cab drivers who offered this service, I proceeded on to the bus stop just outside the gate. I approached the IDF soldier, and the Policeman standing there, to ask their assistance, but neither spoke English. Then one of the Orthodox Jewish young men spoke up, and motioned to his friend who spoke English, that I needed help. I explained that I didn't know if I should go with this cab driver, and would he be willing to help me out. He started to explain to me that I should look for the cab driver's license to be plainly displayed, when I hesitated he said, "Come." Then he walked me back inside the gate to where all the cab drivers were parked, and he looked inside the cab of the gentleman who had offered to take me around, and he motioned to me, "Not this one." At which point the cab driver got very upset, then he walked me up to the second cab and looked inside, and he said again, "No." Again, on to the third cab, same response, "No" until another cab pulled up, and my little escort looked into his cab, upon seeing this cab driver's license clearly displayed, he said to me, "Here take this one." I think of him as the angel G-d said He would send to go before me when I traveled in His land. (Exodus 23: 20-23)
(28) Daniel Rosenzweig, May 13, 2005 12:00 AM
Re'u mah bein bni...
I learned in a Yeshiva in Yerushalayim for two years. Shortly before I left, I was on a bus when a little boy took out an apple to eat. An elderly gentleman across the aisle suggested that he make the bracha aloud, which he did. It was one of those special moments when the entire bus answered Amen in unison!
Shortly thereafter I was at the Kosel when I saw a man put some money in the hand of his little son. Although the boy was reluctant, the father took him by the hand and made him give the money to a needy person standing there. When I got back to New York, I was in a subway car with an American soldier. He was carrying his duffle bag, and was met at his station by his wife and child, apparently after an absence of some time. After greeting his wife, the soldier squatted down and took his little boy's hand in his, and proceeded to teach him to "slap him five". At that point Leah Imenu's words rang in my head, "Reu mah bein bni l'ben chomi!"
(27) Anonymous, May 12, 2005 12:00 AM
The little things count.
We often pay heed to the seemingly "big" matters, without realizing that the small, inconsequential deeds we do day in and day out go such a long way in contributing to our personhood as well as to the world at large. The "small" deeds described in this excerpt are in reality significant ones. Next time I'm tempted to make a critical comment or think a critical thought, I will remember that these anecdotes are just a sampling of the innumerable acts of kindness that take place in Israel every day.
(26) Israel Fan, May 12, 2005 12:00 AM
no place like it in the world!
When I was in my gap year there I went away for a Shabbat to Ramat Bet Shemesh, I couldn't belive it when I realised that the front doors to the houses didn't lock automatically as they do here in the UK, when you shut the door. Meaning if the front door was shut, people could open it and walk in and out like a normal door, (of course it has the option to lock it as well). That type of door could only be of use in a country where people were happy for other people to walk in and out thier house and make themselves feel at home, and in a country where people trust one another.
Nowhere quite like it!!
(25) ellie, May 12, 2005 12:00 AM
even the cab drivers have Ahavat Yisroel
When you go to Israel and step into a cab, it is amazing to note that even the secular cab drivers will go on and on about how Israel is such an amazing place, and whee G-d wants us to be.
(24) Candy Engel, May 12, 2005 12:00 AM
Lessons from a bus
I lived in Israel for 2 years, and when I was there I wrote down many icidences that struck me as amazing. It is incredible what one can learn form Egged bus experieces.
Lesson #1
It was one of 'those 'days. One of those "I hate what I look like' kind of days. I stared at my reflection in the bus window, on a rainy night All i could see was imperfection. I was drowning in self pity.
Distracted by the disappearance of my reflection due to a raindrop, I diverted my eyes. There, diagonally in front of was my lesson.
Quick eye contact was made with a woman. I quickly turned away so as not to stare. The sight of her sobered up any self pitying emotions.
Her face was completely deformed. She had over extended cheekbones, a shapless nose, and her skew lips did not close. Her face was engraved with scars, and her thick glasses hinted at her very poor eyesight.
"G-d have mercy on this poor woman! Here I am complaining, when really i have nothing but to be thankful for."
I turned back to look at her once more and that is when i truly blushed. I noticed that she was wearing a sheitel. My focus changed completely. This grossly deformed woman had a husband! Someone saw beyond the exterior and found her beautiful soul. What a beautiful thing this religious Jewish Life. Appreciation for what really is.
Lesson #2
It had been a good 20 minute wait. Eventually the the bus turned the corner. It had been a long day. All I wanted to do was get home.
An Israeli rule - never line up politely for the bus. Everyone has to converge together and push their way into the bus.
I had been waiting ever so patiently, when suddenly I was nudged out of the way. " How rude!" I thought. I turned to find a very religious looking youth inching his way through the crowded group, and ever so slightly bumping me out of line.
I felt like screaming at him. I watched him push his way to the front an literally push people aside. "How disgusting I thought - and he is supposed to be frum!"
I just stepped onto the bus has he had made his way to the front. " How are you?" the bus driver asked him. And then, in a very warped and loud voice I heard hime reply "Baruch Hashem". It caught my attention and I stared at the back of his head, i noticed his hearing aid adjacent his payer. That is when i asked G-d for forgiveness in being so quick to judge others. For basless hatred, for my impatience. He was a disabled person, able to ride the bus independantly - with pride, and express as best he could HIS gratitude to G-d.
(23) Anonymous, May 12, 2005 12:00 AM
no "stranger danger" fears
During my first trip to Israel, when I was 16, I was supposed to meet my madricha (counselor) at her apartment. She wrote down the address for me, but I got confused by the building-slash-apartment system, and instead of going to building 5, apartment 7, I went to building 7, apartment 5. When I knocked on the door and an elderly lady answered, I started to panic. I explained that I was lost and she invited me in. With amazement, knowing my parents would never let me do something like that in the US, I went into her apartment, had a glass of tea and a piece of cake while the woman called my madricha to find out exactly where she lived. It was an amazing feeling that I could totally trust this stranger, and that she helped me out so cheerfully.
(22) Elana Ben-Tor, May 11, 2005 12:00 AM
Wallet returned - twice!
I left my wallet on a bus twice during my year in Israel. The first time, someone immediately turned it in and the bus driver brought it to the main office within 20 minutes. The second time, a student at another seminary found it and called the only number listed, which was my parents in California. After getting my number, she made a great effort to get it back to me as quickly as possible - didn't even ask the obvious which was fo r me to make the trip to get it.
(21) Eilleen, May 11, 2005 12:00 AM
Only In Israel
It was the last day of my first (and not the last) visit to Israel. This was also the first day I really had to myself, and I spent it on the beach. I went into the water and saw a man playing with his two young children in the water. I referred to his cute children in some manner, and because he knew that he was talking to a Jewish American, he asked me if I wanted one of his kids! He gave me one of his kids to play with in the water while he went to talk with his friends. The child was so cute and although I could hardly understand what he was saying (he was speaking Hebrew) and he couldn't understand me (I don't really know Hebrew), we had a lot of fun laughing and playing in the water together. Finally, I brought him over to his father as I was getting tired. I really felt like I was with family - I couldn't get over the trust that this gentleman had in me - I was a total stranger; but I wasn't. Only in Israel, one Jew is not a stranger to another.
(20) Anonymous, May 11, 2005 12:00 AM
made me cry!
It reminded me of all the wonderful things that ever happened to me in the 7 years I was there and the beauty of Am Yisroel and the Kedusha of Eretz Yisroel and it's people.
THANKYOU!
(19) Janet Clare, May 11, 2005 12:00 AM
Only in Israel
On the morning before Passover, I put the finishing touches on the apartment I had just rented and went to the Jerusalem "shuk", open-air market, to do my holiday shopping. Afterwards, at the shuk's bus station, I repacked my backpack with as many sacks of food as it could hold and took a bus home. On arriving I realized I had forgotten my purse at the bus station. It was gone, along with the keys to my apartment. Not knowing what to do and being new to the country, I called the police station to see if by some miracle they had it. They didn't, but the policeman suggested I call a locksmith and since it was so close to time for the seder meal, he gave me the HOME phone number of one he knew and wished me a happy holiday. I called this locksmith who unbelievably offered to leave his family to come out to help me get into my apartment and change the locks. My nextdoor neighbors found me waiting for him to arrive, and, introducing themselves, invited me into their apartment. They called the owner of my apartment who had another key and insisted on leaving his seder preparations in a nearby town to come open my door. All of these people had better things to do at this hectic time than to help a stranger, but they did.
Meanwhile, back at the bus station a shopper had noticed my purse and took it back to the shuk, giving it to the workers of the first stall he/she came to. The stall owner gave it to a passing off duty policeman he knew. As it was getting late, the policeman took it home with him and went through it to find me. As I had just moved, my new address and phone number weren't in it, so he called what numbers he could until he found a friend who had my new number. He called it, but as I was locked out I couldn't answer the phone.
As soon as the holiday was over, he called again. HE apologized for not being able to reach me earlier! He was also sad to report that all the money in my wallet was missing. Laughing, I explained that no money had been stolen. I had simply spent it all at the shuk.
So many unknown, good people went out of their way to be kind to an absolute stranger. What a country! What a people! What an honor to the Creator of us all.
(18) MESA, May 11, 2005 12:00 AM
Mi K'Amcha Yisrael...
In winter of 1995, I was studying in Israel, and I had been invited to family friends for Shabbat. I was given directions to their home in Rechavia. Problem was that I got confused, and by the time I realized how lost I was, we were long past my stop. Thank G-d the bus driver had a Jewish heart. He calmed me down (I was very panicky) and assured me that he would get me back to where I needed to go. He did, and he didn't charge me extra.
My husband and I are planning to make Aliyah as soon as I finish my degree. Stories like these remind me of how much I miss Eretz Yisrael and how important it is for us to get there as soon as we can.
Mi K'Amcha Yisrael
(17) yehoshua halevi, May 10, 2005 12:00 AM
more Jews should know the truth!
more Jews should know the truth of the soul of 'am yisrael'!! thank you for this important article.
(16) Anonymous, May 10, 2005 12:00 AM
forgotten items in market
THis happened to me twice, in 2 different stores. In one, I forgot a broomstick at the register after paying for it. I didn't get around to returning to the store for about a month. When I came , I inquired at the customer servive area about my broomstick. She took out a notebook, looked back to about a month prior, and said, oh yes, for 3.6 shekels? ok, go get one! The same type of thing happened in my local makolet!
(15) PAULINE BERLINER, May 10, 2005 12:00 AM
I love your website because you cover such a vast range of topics. I would like to add my two cents worth. In 1967 I was on the Syrian border when the war broke out. I was personal chef to both Ben Gurion and Golda Meir when they came to inspect the border security. I remember so vividly that one evening, around midnight while we were sitting around eating chocolate cake and drinking coffee, Ben Gurion told me that while the world was sleeping on the issue of terrorism, not only would the numbers increase to millions, but that there would be a world catastrophe and he predicted in about twenty years. Well, 9/11 came about. Also, even after the Cole was attacked, we still sat and waited. We must never be caught in that situation again. Hopefully we have learned something from all this horror.
(14) Yoka, May 10, 2005 12:00 AM
Fantastic
What a great stories. Wish I was living there. It broke my heart when I had to leave Israel from a very long vacation. Hope to be back soon again.
(13) esther, May 10, 2005 12:00 AM
Israel, our wonderful land
The stories from both the author and the readers lit up my soul. I have visited Israel many times but oh to live there and experience the wonders of Israel daily! Maybe, one day but for now, such articles make me very proud and happy.
(12) Lindsey Feinstein, May 9, 2005 12:00 AM
my mother's yahrzeit
I was in Jerusalem on August 6,2004, my mother's first yahrzeit. I had brought a candle with me to light on that Shabbat. When my husband and I checked into our room, I noted that it was specifically forbidden to burn candles in the room. I was really upset because I wanted to light a candle and say Kaddish for my mother. My husband calmed me down and suggested we talk with the hotel staff. They were wonderful! They told us that their staff was on duty 24-7 and I could light the candle in the office behind the reception desk and be assured it would burn 24 hours. Because my emotions were still so close to the surface only one year after losing my mother, I so appreciated that consideration on the part of the hotel staff.
(11) Chaya Bluma, May 9, 2005 12:00 AM
Just Two Recent Examples of Why It's so Great to be in Israel
This morning, I went to get the battery changed in my daughter's watch. I've been to the watchmaker before and we greeted each other with a smile. He pointed out that it is sort of a junky watch which I readily admitted, but said that if it still works, my daughter would like to wear it. Somehow, I mentioned that today is Rosh Chodesh Eyar & that that stands for Ani HaShem Rofecha -- I am G-d your Healer. The watchmaker had never heard that before & was visibly moved. He is an elderly man and showed me a newspaper article about the rise of alternative medicine which he intends to bring to his doctor to show her that he's on top of the latest developments. He then charged me less than usual -- for my "consultation"!
Last week when I drove to the shuk, I saw a small, elderly woman standing on the corner and motioning violently with her arm. I thought she was encouraging the young women on the other side of the street to wait for the "walk" sign to cross. Soon, a tall, muscular guy came up to her and spoke with her and proceeded to gently lead her across. I saw that he then quickly went on his way without waiting for even a word of thanks.
How fortunate we are to live here!
(10) Joseph Benzaquen, May 9, 2005 12:00 AM
A hot summer's day
This happened to me more than 15 years ago when I was a student. At the time my college was located in a complex outside Rishon Le Tziyon. The nearest bus stop was about a 20 minute walk away, on the main Rishon-Tel Aviv highway.
It was a very hot day & I got of the bus & started the long treck to the college. About 5 minutes into my walk when I was already soaking wet with sweat, a taxi stopped and the driver, a secular Israeli asked me where I was heading to. On hearing my destination he said "jump in". I declined politely saying that I couldn't afford to take taxis. He replied "Money doesn't matter I'm going your way, jump in".
(9) Sadeena Pinhasik, May 9, 2005 12:00 AM
hachnasat Kallah -- helping new brides -- and a good hearted storekeeper
I have a gemach for kallahs where they are provided with some of the basic necessities of setting up a their new home, their 'bayit neeman biyisrael.' Recently I took a young couple to a hardware store to attain some items they had requested, using money donated to the gemach. When we reached the store, I quietly told the storeowner what this was all about. I waited awhile for the couple to make their decisions and then they approached me and told me that while they needed a shower curtain, they felt bad having the gemach spend 150 NIS since there was nothing cheaper. I also thought that 150 Nis was a bit expensive but didn't want to disappoint them. The storeowner walked by in the middle of this conversation and immediately said to the young couple, "You're choosing the one you want and I'll take care of it!"
(8) Miriam (Bernstein) Gross, May 9, 2005 12:00 AM
Thanks for the smile!
I appreciated hearing these uplifting stories and would like to share one of my own. The Israeli Postal Service offers a free, convenient service-- the ability to pay all sorts of utility bills by enclosing payment (checks)in their pink no-postage-required envelopes. Then they mark the bills paid and send you back part as a receipt. Well, about 10 years ago, I got much more than a receipt back in the mail-- I received one my own signed blank checks that must have accidentally slipped into the envelope--along with a hand-written note by an anonymous, but much appreciated clerk--"Please be sure to not send extra checks." (!)
(7) Z.K., May 9, 2005 12:00 AM
Israeli buses again
Israel is the only place that people can get on the back of the bus (esp. w/ baby carriages) and pass their fare up to the front through a crowded bus and know that their fare will get there. Also, if somebody is running for the bus & the driver didn't see & starts driving, the entire bus seems to call out "rega!" (wait a second) for the stranger running. The driver always stops.
(6) Anonymous, May 8, 2005 12:00 AM
Loving Kindness encounters
Often rode different buses from beginning to end of route to learn my way around Jerusalem. One time the Driver told me to stay seated until his break was over and took me back to Bus Center.. other times the driver was a tour guide and I had many beautiful visits with other riders
Thank you ....
(5) raye, May 8, 2005 12:00 AM
Another bus story
I was going to the youth hostel in Ein Gedi. It was after Succoth 1999. I had a map only I didn't know how to tell the driver where I should get off. A lady across the aisle saw I was in trouble. She looked at the map and yelled to the bus driver that he had gone way past my stop. The driver turned around and whizzed back quite a distance without letting the other astonished passengers know the reason. One shouted "We are going back!" I was visting Israel from the USA after many years absence and never cease to wonder at the bighearted people.
(4) Anonymous, May 8, 2005 12:00 AM
Special Shabbos in Tsfat
Before I left for three weeks in Israel, I put an announcement on the Tsfat bulletin board looking to rent a place for Shabbos. Quite kindly, the web caretaker informed me that she had moved my request to a place where more people would see it.
On the only Friday I could go to Tsfat I was too late to attend a class at Ascent and threw caution to the wind, calling every number I had for a place to stay in Tsfat. Each number was a voicemail in Hebrew or a no answer until one woman answered who was never at home at this time of day but due to a schedule change was going to work late that one day.
On the bus to Tsfat, I had no idea where I would eat, etc., it was just mental chaos as I had gotten to the bus stop only minutes before it left. A young lady sat next to me and asked where I was going and so on. She left for a few minutes and returned to tell me that I would be sharing Shabbos dinner with her family night. Imagine a stranger on a bus being invited for Shabbos a few minutes after starting a conversation.
The mother and her two daughters put on a Shabbos meal so wonderful, never to be forgotten and then they sang like angels on high for an hour.
I could never repay their spontaneous generosity in kind as I live in America but B"H I am able to support a tzadakah fund in Tsfat every month and hope to live there one day.
(3) Anonymous, May 8, 2005 12:00 AM
Great Article
Hope there are more articles like this one
(2) yaakov, May 8, 2005 12:00 AM
these wer ewonderful stories and if any more occur you should keep on sending them in it makes feel some sort of a connection and pride for our nation keep up the good work
(1) Anonymous, May 8, 2005 12:00 AM
Israelli Bus
I always tell people that Israel is the only only place where the bus driver will stop for you to go to the bathroom in the middle of the desert. Also, it is the only place where one can honk at a police car who is blocking his way. You just feel at home.