Lee Diamond – Miracles Happen
Golda is reputed to have that that in Israel we don’t believe in miracles!
We depend upon them.
In the summer of 1964 I (along with Ben and Judy Hollander ז״ל) had privilege of leading a tour of “USY on Wheels” across America.
40 USYers, one bus, one driver, 3 staff members set out to discover America.
No smart phones
No computers.
Prayer books in hand.for our 3x daily prayer.
Hebrew/ English texts of the Mishnah– in paper bound editions for daily study.
Hosting reservations in hand in Jewish communities across The USA and Canada.
Occasional hotel reservations and kosher restaurant reservations where available.
Staff Money filled our pockets for incidentals.
Guide books for the staff to prepare with.
Guiding assignments for each of the participants to prepare for presentation.
Contact names and numbers in the various communities we would be staying.
One Friday we checked into the youth hostel at Grand Canyon national park.
As Shabbat descended upon us we joined in our reserved room for Kabbalah Shabbat prayers and a fish dinner.
As services were in progress we noticed someone standing at the back of the room.
He was staring in disbelief at us. He watched as we prayed, as we ate, and as we concluded our meal sigh” zmirot” and Birkat Hamazon.
And then he approached us.
He was visibly shaken. Smiling yet deeply shocked.
He turned to us and uttered words of thanks between his tears.
“I haven’t seen or met Jewish teens, so young and vital praying, singing and dancing like this in many years” Thank you so much for this. I’m so sorry for my bewilderment and emotional reaction. But I have to thank you for allowing me to be with you tonight. You have no idea how much you have given me.”
He was from San Francisco. We told him that we would be there soon.
We exchanged addresses and contact numbers and parted!
3 days later we arrived in San Francisco. We checked into our reserved hotel and desperate for a meat meal after days of fish only, we set out for a Jewish deli that we had heard of.
We found the address!
The kids were salivating for corned beef and pastrami sandwiches
I got off the bus to check out the facility
There in the window of this deli were corned beefs and pastramis piled high and inviting.
And in between all the tempting chunks of beef, decorating them with contrasting colors of yellow were round fatty cheeses.
As I stood there with my colleagues we knew that we had been led astray and that we had to return to our 40 young students, promised a hunk of kosher beef, to admit that we had failed miserably. As we approached the awaiting students in shame and despair, one of us declared: “why don’t we call that man we had met in the Grand Canyon. Surely he will know where there is a kosher meat restaurant in San Francisco!”
We called
Our friend of 3 days answered.
“‘I’ve been waiting for your call’
“Dinner is ordered for p you in a kosher boarding house here”
“Come to the following address and I’ll meet you there” said he.
With shock but with joy we returned to the bus; proudly informed the 40 kids of our luck and drove to the address we had received.
As we arrived the hostess was outside awaiting us. So was our new friend of 3 days.
We were greeted with elegance .The meal was a meal for kings and queens. The flavors were a ‘taste of heaven.”
And then our friend of 3 days approached the group and in modest tones said to us
“I’m a survivor of Auchwitz!”
I left my Jewishness behind when I left Auchwitz.
I don’t even know Jews anymore.
But when I heard your prayer and song and dance by chance in the Grand Canyon National Park, my Jewish soul was reignited after years of hiding and escape. You gave me life again.
I knew in my soul that you would call. I arranged this dinner for all of you as my way of thanking you for restoring my soul
God bless you, said he
And we were blessed.
You see, we don’t believe in miracles today
We depend upon them
We believe with perfect faith in the coming of the Messiah, and even if he tarry, we still believe!
