Everyday Life in the Redemption: Examples from Israel

How to care for each other may seem like small potatoes when thinking about the Redemption, but its so important. After all, what did the Rebbe reply to CNN when asked what is his message to the world? "Moshiach (the Messiah) is ready to come now. It is only from our part to  do something additional in the realm of goodness and kindness." Then the Rebbe added, "At least a little more..."

by Tzvia Ehrlich-Klein

THE LITTLE BOY AND THE BUS DRIVER

Israel is truly the country of miracles and amazing daily-life situations, if you keep your eyes and ears open. This true bus story took place a few years ago on the Number 10 bus from Ramat Shlomo.

Since my friend M. L. lives near the first bus stop, she was one of the first passengers to get on the bus that day. She took the seat right behind the bus driver - the perfect seat for seeing and hearing much of what goes on a bus.

After a few bus stops, a little boy climbs onto the bus and sits down across the isle from M.L., in easy view of both my friend and the bus driver. Two or three bus stops later, this little boy suddenly bursts into tears. And, as the bus is slowly meandering through the residential streets, he continues to cry and cry and cry.

By the next bus stop, the driver turns around in his seat and asks the little boy: "Why are you crying so hard? What's wrong?"

The sobbing little boy answers that he was 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 is supposed to go. However, he has forgotten his mother's directions and what he is supposed to do.

Without a word to anyone, or a comment of any kind, the bus driver turns the entire bus around and returns to the child's house. He opens the bus's doors and tells the little boy to hurry and ask his mother for directions again and then to hurry back. Meanwhile, the bus driver again turns his (big) bus around in order to be heading in the right direction, and explains the whole story to his perplexed passengers.

Of course, since we're living in Israel, no one complains or protests this disruption in the regular scheduling of public transportation. Everyone just waits for the little boy to come back to the bus and climb aboard.

Which he soon does. And then the bus drives off again, continuing on its regular route.

THE COMFORT PROJECT AT THE BUS STOP

That's an extraordinary story, but there are other bus stories, which don't necessarily end in lots of oooh's and ahhhs. But life in Israel, on the public bus system, can often be entertaining, and usually an experience.

For example, my friend Shifra was standing at a busy bus stop the other day waiting for one of the four or five buses that run on Shimon HaTzadik Street in Jerusalem. An old, very tired looking lady carrying several large packages walked over to the bus stop, and a seat was immediately vacated for her. As she sat down, the old woman sighed deeply, saying:

"Oy, maspik kevar. Ani lo yecholah. Maspik. (Oy, enough already. I can't anymore.}"

After a few minutes of this, several people turned to the old woman, saying, "It'll be okay, Savta (Grandma). It'll be okay:' But the old woman just kept on sighing and repeating, "Oy, Ani lo yecholah. Maspik."

A young woman wearing pants, who was standing on the other side of the large bus stop, walked over to the old woman, and bent down to tell her: "It will be okay. Don't talk like that. You just need something sweet." Then she squeezed down in the seat between her and another woman. She proceeded to open her pocketbook and start rummaging through it.

Finding a candy, the young woman handed it to the old lady, saying, "Here is something sweet for you. You just need something sweet,"

At this point, the woman sitting on the other side of the old lady added: "Yes, take the candy. You'll feel better. You shouldn't talk like that. Everything will be okay."

After several minutes of this, my friend Shifra joined the conversation, mentioning to the people standing around her that the old woman was probably tired of all the things she'd been going through.

Though everyone probably understood, yet another woman added her response to the old lady:

"It doesn't matter. You'll see that everything will be all right (Yehiyeh tov),"

THE OPPOSITE OF ROAD RAGE

These stories are quite different from what I hear has been going on in the States the last few years. It seems that there, a disease called "Road Rage" proliferates. I had never heard of it before: It's when someone who is driving a car gets so angry at another driver that he or she gets out of the car and either shoots or seriously beats up the other driver. Amazing. Life sure is different in Israel, and here's a story to prove it.

In Jerusalem, Bentzi and Ashira G. had a "run in" a few months ago with a big, burley Israeli truck-driver who was dressed in an undershirt. They were driving along the Beit Shemesh Highway, but were in a hurry to get back to their home in Telz Stone. Stuck behind a very slow driver, Bentzi kept trying to switch lanes and pass the car because they were in such a rush.

Again and again, Bentzi tried to get around the driver in front of him, but cars kept speeding by in the adjacent lane. Bentzi just couldn't pass that slow car.

Suddenly, a huge semi-trailer truck that had been driving behind Bentzi for quite awhile pulled out into the other lane and then slowed down, keeping even with the back of Bentzi's car. Honking and trying to get Benz's attention, this truck driver motioned to Bentzi to pull out and pass the slow car in front of him. The truck driver was blocking the adjacent lane so that Bentzi could pull out safely and pass the slow car.

Waving his thanks to the truck driver, Bentzi pulled in front of the slow car, and then noticed that the truck driver fell back to where he had been before, behind that slow car.

The truck driver hadn't wanted to pass the slow car. He had just wanted to do Bentzi a favor. Now that's road behavior!

Tzvia Ehrlich-Klein's books, published by Feldheim, include: ON CAB DRIVERS. SHOPKEEPERS AND STRANGERS. ON BUS STOPS. BAKERS AND BEGGERS. and ON BUS DRIVERS, DREIDELS AND ORANGE JUICE.