Twelve years ago, I spent part of my summer visiting and working with Jewish communities in Central America. I was travelling with a friend and spent time in Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua and El Salvador making communal Jewish programs and making dozens of visits to Jewish homes and businesses. During my travels, I encountered many amazing people and experienced several incredible stories, one of which I would like to share below.
One day, we travelled to Antigua Guatemala an old town that sits on the Central Highlands of Guatemala that used to be its capital until it was destroyed by an earthquake and volcano eruption. The population of the town is just over 30,000 and is mostly local made up of local Guatemalans along with a healthy dose of foreign tourists. The ancient town which was situated in the shadow of the towering Volcano was stunningly beautiful and rich in color and diversity.
We had heard that there were Jewish backpackers in the area and one Israeli who owned a Café in town and we hoped to be able to have a chance to meet them. We spent some time walking around the old market and 16th century cobblestone streets and actually bumped into a few Israeli backpackers who identified us and realized we were not locals. (Later this trip would lay the groundwork for some Chabad led Seders for Israeli backpackers who travelled and spent time in Antigua).
We then went and headed over to the Café that was geared towards the foreign tourists who visited Antigua and was owned and run by a young Israeli man. When we arrived, Yochai the owner was not there and instead we met a young longhaired Israeli backpacker called Roey, who was running the Café. We spent some time chatting with Roey and then when Yochai came we chatted with him too.
Yochai got busy running the Café and Roey prepared to leave and rest, as he was not feeling that great. Before he left, we asked him if he would like to lay Tefillin and say the Shema. Roey replied, “sure, that would be awesome”! We looked around the Café and realized that it was starting to fill up with tourists so Roey suggested that he don the Tefillin in the street.
We stepped outside the Café onto a small side street of this picturesque town and began laying the Tefillin. It was surreal scene, as Roey wrapped the Tefillin and local Guatemalans walked by, returning home from a long and hard day’s work. Suddenly a woman dressed like one of the locals, approached us to stare at this uncanny sight that was unfolding on a street in her little town. Her mouth slowly opened and her face changed to an astonished and shocked expression as she stared at us with this penetrating deep look.
I realized that what we were doing was interesting and probably intriguing to say the least, so I said hello in Spanish and asked her how she was doing. The woman replied in Spanish and asked us if we were Rabbis, to which we replied that we were. She then asked us if we were from the States to which we replied in the positive.
At this point, I was starting to wonder where this was going and how she even knew what Rabbis were. Suddenly she switched to fluent English and now it was my turn to be in shock as she told us that she too is Jewish and had grown up in a Jewish family NY. She described to us her total shock at seeing this scene unfold on the street as she returned home from work, and told us that she is the only permanent Jew in town and is married to a local Guatemalan and has several children.
The woman left almost as quickly as she appeared and I forgot most of the info that she told me. Yet when I got back to Guatemala City, I relayed the info to the Chabad Rabbi who was eventually able to connect with her and her family and put them in touch with the main Jewish community.
As I think back to this story, I am always amazed at the timing and coordination of the events that led to our meeting of this woman. We had spent hours talking with Roey inside the Cafe, but only spent three minutes outside in the street while he donned Tefillin at the end of the day. Yet it was in that three-minute window that the woman walked by and was transported back in time as she reconnected with her heritage and ancestors. Ultimately, without any action or choice on our part, this tiny three-minute window led to her connecting herself and her family with the Jewish community in the Capital.
In life, we do not always know the power of our actions or choices and where the ripple effect will end. Often we may never discover the full impact of our actions, and only sometimes are we lucky enough to see behind the curtain and see how the strings of life are being pulled and directed.
Personally, this story has always reminded me of the dynamic tension that exists as we go through life and seek to live and act like a good Jew. It reminds me that our job in life is to do the right thing regardless of whether we appreciate the specific benefits of those actions. Yet at the same time, we do those actions with the knowledge that we are part of a much larger and greater plan, and in reality each performer in the show is making a specific and unique difference to the production that is being produced.
In this week’s portion, we begin the Book of Numbers that includes a census of all the Jews. The purpose of the Census was twofold, as it both spiritually empowered every single Jew and also it highlighted how every Jew was and is critical for the success of the spiritual mission and purpose of the Jewish people.
The show that we are part of is not an off Broadway Show, or even a Broadway show, instead we are part of the biggest and most important show that was ever produced, it is the story of the Jewish people and our mission of changing the world, one particle and person at a time.
Now, it's time to get back to the production.
Good Shabbos
janice wrote...
Thankx for sharing!