After United Hatzalah paramedic Elad Bachar met Shliach to Sumy, Ukraine, Rabbi Yechiel Levitansky, who had just made a treacherous 32-hour voyage to escape Ukraine to Romania, he was so touched he penned a post describing the meeting.
After United Hatzalah paramedic Elad Bachar met Shliach to Sumy, Ukraine, Rabbi Yechiel Levitansky, who had just made a treacherous 32-hour voyage to escape Ukraine to Romania, he was so touched he penned a post describing the meeting.
A small (big!) Story about coincidences and how everything is written in Heaven.
We stopped at a remote gas station on the way from the border of Moldova – Romania towards Chisinau, tired and need coffee and something sweet for the soul.
I finished drinking and walk towards the car, and suddenly meet a nice 12 year old boy with a big black yarmulka on his head. I start talking to him in Hebrew and ask about his parents. I get in the car and a nice family of 6 comes out to me who tells me an amazing story, a story I did not believe I would hear in 2022, a story that sounds like it was taken from a script of an action film with a happy ending. And throughout this amazing family was smiling and happy!
The father of the family is a Chabad shliach from the city of Samu (40 km from the Russian border and 1000 km from the Moldova border) and he tells me about an amazing and scary journey that began on Thursday morning and ended 32 hours later in Chisinau Moldova. A journey where the family traveled 32 hours non-stop. Somehow they managed to get two hours before Shabbos to Kishinev, traveling on scary and snowy roads when there is a war around you and you can not know if you will reach your destination and if you can save your family.
A story that makes you think what would happen if…and makes you think what you would do with your family, with your neighbors and friends, with all the things that are in your home…a story that illustrates to you how life can be a “roller coaster” with ups and downs and puts you in proportion to your own life and the materiality that surrounds us…
I want whoever happens to read this story to think for himself, what would he do? How would he feel? What was he take inside the 3 suitcases he would take for escape? How he would handle a 32-hour ride with a car full of children and 3 suitcases…
The end of the story is happy, we met the rabbi and his family by chance, such modest and kind people.
After the rabbi finished telling about the journey he and his family went through, the rabbi turned to me and asked me if I was interested in putting on tefillin?
How much mental strength can a person have in such a complex situation to still be busy thinking about the other and doing good to all around him…
I put on tefillin with tears in my eyes, happy for the privilege that has fallen in my part to help others, help people who so need the kind word and warm hug…
Discussion
In keeping in line with the Rabbonim's policies for websites, we do not allow comments. However, our Rabbonim have approved of including input on articles of substance (Torah, history, memories etc.)
We appreciate your feedback. If you have any additional information to contribute to this article, it will be added below.