May 14, 2009

Shalom,

Recently as I was walking the sunny streets of Jerusalem with my father and daughter we stopped a kind old woman to ask her where the nearest park was. She directed us to a park several blocks away and told us that my daughter would surely enjoy it. She continued on her way as we lagged a few steps behind, cherishing the picture of my little girl smelling the flowers then just coming into bloom.

In fact, we were enjoying the marvels of spring so much that we got lost. There was no one on the road to ask for directions, so we continued on our way until we came to the garden of a house that was being tended by the same old lady. Feeling right at home like all Jerusalemites feel with one another we entered and again asked her for directions. With a warm smile she told us how to get to the park, and then took my daughter’s hand and led her to the garden’s fish pond. I realized that the park would have to wait, because feeding fish is just too exciting for a two-year-old to pass up.

As we stood in the garden my father and I looked at each other and smiled. I knew that we were thinking the same thing what a blessing it is to be raising a child in a country where she can be taught to trust strangers and turn to them for help. How beautiful it is that here in Jerusalem this old lady looks at my daughter as her own and seems to take joy just from watching her smile. My father summed up our feelings. “Only in the Holy Land,” he said to me. “Only in Jerusalem would I trust a stranger with my precious granddaughter.”

When we looked at the name on the elderly lady’s mailbox, my father’s face lit up. “Yael,” he said to me, “I think this lady might be my great aunt!” He rushed over to the fish pond and asked the woman if she was the sister of Aunt Leah and she answered yes. Our “stranger” was a member of our family!

After hours of drinking coffee, playing in the garden, and catching up on family members, it was time for us to leave the home of the woman we now knew as Aunt Sarah. We entered her home as strangers but departed with hugs and kisses. Knowing we were blood relatives surely strengthened our bond, but even when we thought she was a stranger we still had felt a feeling of genuine love and trust for her.

Some say it’s the continual threat of terrorism that makes the Jews of Jerusalem feel such a special bond for each other. But I know it is much more than that. Here we Jews are unified by the knowledge that we are God’s children who have been given the great privilege of finally living in the Holy Land. We have broken down barriers and learned to look at our neighbors as family. It only makes sense because when you trace our lineage, you know that is exactly what we are.

With blessings from Jerusalem,
Yael