I thought I was just going to order a sandwich to go.
The yeshiva advertised food would no longer be served.
I didn’t know that meant take everything away; the cereal, the milk, the coffee,
Everything I was gonna live off of.
The fruit…
They even took away the freakin’ fruit.
So needless to say Adam and I were starved motzei Shobbos. Luckily, I have a habit of hoarding oranges, which I ate for all my meals on Friday (1). Shobbos was covered because we ate at families we know, but along comes motzei Shobbos and I’m hungry.
We figured this was a yeshiva expense (is it not?), so we took some Yeshivabound money and went out to eat at the deli (which isn’t really a deli).
When we got to the corner we bumped into an Israeli gal looking for a place to get pizza. I phoned my friend. Heck it turned out to be really close. Gee why wouldn’t we go there?
So we took the girl to Glick’s.
Now here I am, waltzing into a shop with a random gal on a motzei Shobbos. But I was hungry.
Then it occurred to me that all three of us should split a pie. Made a lot of sense. We ordered, sat down, and just talked. Then the adjacent table, a woman and two men in their 40s and 50s, turned around and started chatting with us. Soon you would have thought we all came there together.
All the while NO pizza. Adam went up to enquire. “what size did you order?” &#*@!
So we continued our dinner party. Then a Rabbi looking guy asked if we were in YG and started talking to us too. turned out his brother was my principal my first year in NY.
It was all so random. ( STILL NO PIZZA)
20 minutes later we got our pie.
We all took a slice and gave the rest to her since she pretty much had no food either. All the while the entire half of the restaurant turned into a big conversation, like the kind you have at your home with people talking across other people talking to other people. It was like we all knew each other! She had been backpacking around Australia and is probably going to be here for a few more weeks to tour, except she doesn’t know where anything is. I on the other hand practically have the city memorized. So we swapped numbers with the promise that we’d show her all the sights after Pesach. That should be a ton of fun (the zoo!).
Now we got a new friend to go around town.
We got soft serve ice-cream (really good) and worked out the payment for pizza.
We woke up late, had to rush like mad. Didn’t even have breakfast.
On the way there we were briefed on who we’d be seeing. One guy sounded interesting. Apparently he made a huge fuss about the lack of kosher accommodations in the prisons. Because of him, they had to have all these meetings about it and eventually the whole system got kosher food. All thanks to him – and he’s not actually Jewish.
We arrived with Matzah, chocolate, gefilte fish (couldn’t bring it in – glass), and macaroons. Anything else? I don’t think so. We dropped them off buy the store. We asked about the location of the prisoners. One transferred. One we didn’t know the last name and he must have moved. Another transferred. So all we had was one Jew and another who thought he was a Jew (not the same guy – he transferred.)
We caused a bit of trouble I suppose. We met our Jewish guy. He didn’t want to put on Teffilin where others could see. We decided to get an escort to the chapel. A cute blond gal escorted us (because she would keep us so safe right?). We got to the chapel and then she remembered that he was not allowed to mix w/ the mainstream prisoners, or be left alone. She would have to lock us in the chapel. We didn’t have keys. I told her it would be super quick. Come on please. Alright. We went in. When she wasn’t looking we took down the cross and put it under the table and started to get out the Teffilin. Then another lady came not happy that this inmate was over here. Time to go. So close! Ok ok be right out. Go go go! Mrs Rubin went to speak while Adam and I finished up. Whew. We took him back to his unit. We forgot to put the cross back up.
Oops
We then had to pick up this panick-button necklace things (called a duress) for the unit we were going to. Just pull it off and it makes an insanely loud noise. Then I suppose you run around in circles for about two minutes till help arrives. Or maybe it just scares people. The whole time I wanted to pull it to see what would happen. We got into the protection unit where the rough prisoners resided. We had to sign in and Mrs. Rubin went up to the desk. We were immediately noticed by all the inmates. What ensued:
They all looked at us and an Arab guy started mock saluting us.
Then they all came over
“hey you salaam aleikem” two Arab guys said accompanied buy a few other inmates.
“aleikem salaam” I responded. I didn’t trust these dudes a bit, but I’m always going to be Joe Cool.
“hey wassup with you guys you Jewish right?”
“yep”
“cool man, hey,
You smoke pot?”
“naw man”
“haha all rightI see. You coming from another prison?”
“nope just from around here”
“cool man” he crouches down and speaks a little more hushed,
“So you smoke pot?”
“No I told you I don’t. Why?”
“You know, maybe you could bring some next time. Hey you drink.”
“ya, what Jew doesn’t?”
“haha maybe you bring some huh man?”
“I don’t think that’d work”
“naw man they don’t pat you down do they? Huh?”
“ok we’ll see”
“so you really don’t smoke pot?”
We just humored them a bit. Asked us about American prisons and about us and whatnot. They wanted to wear Adam's hat. Na ah.
They told us their names we told them ours, they extended to shake hands. Ah what the heck.
I shook their hand through the bars. My arm was still their.
“aw man I like this guy. I don’t even know ‘im but I like this guy”
I guess I fit right in.
We met the guy. He seemed pretty intelligent. We spoke for a bit. I spoke about what leaving Egypt means for us today, that it meant going beyond the materialism that bogs us down. It was a nice visit. He spoke about how he was sticking to kosher-only food, he even works in the kitchen to insure it. Kosher was very important to him, interesting since he’s not actually Jewish. I think he knows he’s not Jewish, but I would know, you never know what can happen.
We then departed, munching on the extra chocolate we suddenly had.
Diana and I would like to invite you to our Third Annual Non-Zionist Passover Seder, which we are celebrating this year on the fifth night, Friday, April 3rd, at our home. The address will be supplied to those who RSVP. For some people this may mean the third seder in a short period of time; for others, it may be the only one. However – our seder will be different! Why is this seder different from all other seders? Because we concern ourselves with the liberation of all people, not just Jews. Because the service takes a couple of hours, we’re asking people to get here about 5:00 pm. It coincides with Good Friday this year, so hopefully will mean that the day is a holiday for most of us, though it may be the end of the work day for some.
Our seder is both serious (we’re serious about the liberation of the Palestinian people, as well as about the liberation of Jews from being the persecutors of the Palestinians) and fun (we sing silly songs – e.g. A Few of my Passover Things, to the tune of A Few of My Favourite Things; Don’t Sit On the Afikomen, to the tune of Glory, Glory Halleluyah). We eat well (we’re asking everyone to bring something). We enjoy ourselves hugely. Dress is casual and kippot (the little beanies, for those unfamiliar with the word) are not required.
Please RSVP! Diana and I have enough room at our place to accommodate about 18 people at a sit-down meal. So please RSVP ASAP!!! When we reach our limit, we’ll have to turn others away. If you want to bring someone – a spouse, friend or children – let us know. Also, let us know whether or not you or anyone you want to bring is vegetarian. When we have the list of people who want to come, we’ll send more info about food. For those who don’t know, during Passover, many foods are prohibited, especially grains of any kind (which includes flour), legumes, and leavening (yeast and baking powder or soda). No bread, only Matzah, the “bread of affliction,” is allowed. Although Diana and I do not keep Kosher during the rest of the year (we love seafood!), at Passover we try to observe the restrictions. So I’ll be asking you to bring something specific.
We’re looking forward to spending another Passover with our dear friends.
We now enter that enchanting period of between-zmans; when the nonstop task of keeping the rigid schedule is lifted off your chest. It’s the opportunity to go out and actually see a bit of the country you’re going to be living in the next two years, freshen up on what’s been happening out there…
Iran has enriched uranium now? Are we still discussing healthcare? An earthquake? Wait, who won the Super Bowl?
…and just take a productive breather before finishing the rest of the year. It’s got to be the healthiest thing we have. It feels so nice to have all my things in order (for now) and set up for the next zman. Ferheirts are finished, I’ve secured a paying job for Pesach and other things. I got rid of the last of my worries just recently which was an annoying Chinese-exportation issue. They couldn’t export security cameras (or anything for that matter) for me unless I provided proof that I was who I said I was. All the while I have a guy in America who thinks his merchandise is on its way. So I had to quickly take pictures of my passport and whatnot and send it in. I am impressed with these Chinese dudes; their response time is uber fast, like one day fast. But, now the concierge apparently needs the phone # of the addressee for the export paperwork and in case there are issues. I didn’t have it and I couldn’t ask for it and say, “Hey, I haven’t shipped your item…” Well, I went out there, and after some trekking, I found the dude’s number. Now it’s going to be shipped and the whole episode is over and won’t happen again.
I’m gonna watch the Super Bowl. I have it recorded on DVD.
Shiur beis has been that out of reach, cool-club, better-than-gimmel, plane that I’ve had my subtly wishful eyes on since we got here. Until now there was no way I could handle shiur beis, but not anymore.
Of course, toward the end of the zman stress increases around the yeshiva in anticipation for the ferheirts (oral reviews) we all have to pass.This is especially so for me and Adam since we’re chavrusas and are shooting to get moved up from shiur gimmel to shiur beis.
Ah shiur beis. I don’t know exactly what they do, except it’s more in depth and advanced than shiur gimmel. To me, shiur beis and aleph are like the cool-club-frat-houses of YG while gimmel and daled are just where everyone else goes if they didn’t get the invite. Well, it’s not really like that at all but I have a odd way of looking at things.
I’m really sick of shiur gimmel anyway. At the beginning of the year we needed shiur gimmel. We sucked. We could hardly do anything, but we got an excellent shliach who taught us the first hour in the morning and, thanks to him, we managed to come well prepared for shiur in the morning. Then we started to get the hang of what was going on, started to learn more efficiently with our shliach in the morning, and began to keep a steady pace ahead of the shiur. By the next zman R Cohen suggested that we and another pair of chavrusas drop our shliach, so we did. We began learning by ourselves without the guidance of a shliach and it was a little difficult, but we just got up and found help every so often when we needed it. We needed help less and less, and started to cover more and more ground everyday until it got to the point where it didn’t make sense to go forward because there was no way the shiur was going to get as far as us. Then shiur started becoming a drag, the whole shiur getting stuck on an issue that we already understood and wanted to move forward.
I figured out how to fall asleep without getting caught.
I do well on my tests in comparison with everyone else. I saw some report graphs consisting of a pink line, me, hovering over a blue line, everyone else. I suppose that’s a good sign. What really counts though, is the ferheirt. That’s when you get the one-on-one. It’s given by whoever gives the next highest shiur, in my case R Leches (I think I spelled that right).
It’s fun and stressful at the same time. You walk into a room. He’s sits one ones side of the table and you on the other. He opens up casually. So the Gemara says such and such, does that fit with what Rav holds? You answer. You give the reasoning behind it according to what you learned in Tosfos. Easy, you explained exactly what you learned and rattled it off exactly how it’s written in the book. Wrong. It was the right answer, but it doesn’t make sense, see? Don’t you see that answer doesn’t make sense? I know that’s what you learned but it made sense to you? Ugh….stalemate, moving on. Then it goes what happens when such and such a thing happens. Easy, you give all scenarios and opinions. Oh really? Is that all the time? Are you sure about that? Then you go crazy. Did I forget a detail? Am I correct? What am I not seeing? What is it!? Yes I think so! What’d I miss?! Yes! That is my final answer! Now what am I missing?! Nothing. You were right all along (!@*&##%@#!).
And it goes like that for 50min…and I really had to use the bathroom.
Finally the last few minutes; so, you want to be a shiur beisman. And we explained why we felt it best to move up. He said it would be hard, but Gimmel had gotten to be like stale bread; sure you can eat it, but who wants to?
Because we’re so awesome I and my friend Adam were featured in a small publication here known as the MS Weekly. Titled “60 seconds w/ Dovid Staples” I believe it takes longer than 60 seconds to read my profile. This is what went to print;
My earliest memory is… when I was two I went to my grandparents’ house and they got me a pedal wiener-mobile (!). then I went to play w/ water balloons. I threw one at my uncle, but he was in the army so it bounced off his muscles and hit me in the face.
I don’t like talking about… my distant past
I wish I had… faults like normal people
I wish I hadn’t… left my hat on top of the Finck’s car before we drove to his house for Chanuka
I’m very bad at… I’m yet to discover what this could be
Friends say I am… He said WHAT?!
My happiest moment was… Becoming muggier
The hardest thing I’ve ever done is… Working with year two
My favorite food is… Mrs. Sandhaus’s cheesecake
If I wasn’t me I’d like to be… Moshe Rabeinu – might as well shoot for the top, and NOT hit that rock.
If I were a gadget I’d be… The (J-UCAS) X-45C (an unmanned plane [for the uneducated]. – ed)
I often wonder… What’s for dinner…or lunch, or of it’s easier to raise an army of cyborgs or clones.
My 2nd most admired person is… My mashpia R Majesky, Dr. Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., and Mendy Kesselman all tie for that one.
I always say… “oh rats” “oh no” “oh goodness” “oh golly gee willickers” “nifty” “cool beans” “maybe you should just stop talking” (maybe you should -ed)
My last $5 was spent on… Tzedoka. Oh wait, that was my last complete $5. Technically , I recently did laundry, which cost $4, so my last $5 is 1/5 tzedoka, and 4/5 laundry.
If I had a million dollars… I’d start a company as well as a coup to take over Cuba (and give a lot more than $5 to tzedoka).
My favorite color is… certain tints of green.
I get my thrills by… Deciphering Gemara, cool vocab words, cool math, quantum physics, and jumping out of airplanes.
As the first person on earth I’d… look for the second… and maybe go around screaming Snapple facts until then.
My wardrobe in one word would be… supercalafragalisticexpialadotious
In ten years I see myself… as 28…oh and I have smicha, a PhD in something, and I am CEO of a high-tech company with all of Cuba as my experimental playground – yes, I also rule Cuba.
My aspirations are… all that is noted above (including taking over Cuba), plus traveling the entire world and working for a short time in an intense exciting position, but above all, to bring Moshiach duh.
I’m always being called… by my name.
My comment to the MS Weekly is… check ut Yeshivabound.com! (I did, it’s pretty cool –ed)
For the onset of Purim YG put together an impressive rave. For weeks beforehand I’ve had to navigate around the amps, cords, drums, and microphones that have populated my room in preparation. We all gave $20-25 depending on how early you paid. The money was well spent.
Saturday night the bochurim were already under way. They had gotten a sound system, built a stage, set up rafters to hold various lights, covered the walls w/ colored tapestry, shined colored lights in various areas, and even got a disco-ball. All the while they blocked all the doors to keep out free-loaders from the outside and fired up the grill to cook up a gargantuan amount of meat.
Eventually they were done and the live music cranked up. Adam was on the keyboard, Rothman on the drums, and Kudo w/ the electric guitar, they were pretty darn good. Light shined shapes on the floor, the disco-ball sent beams in all directions, the strobe light flashed, and even lasers danced all around the zal. It was rad. They even turned on a smoke machine, which stayed on, and on, and soon you couldn’t see anything. We all danced for who knows how long.
Here in Melbourne, Purim is fund raising day and we decided to go fishing in the Melbourne coffers ourselves. Being that Adam and I had gotten jobs and were no longer interested in Asia, it was no big deal that we got a late start. We would be collecting for Yeshivabound.com.
We had a list of the addresses of Melbourne’s upper-class but no longer possessed it so we decided to just go out and look for big houses. Besides, our friends were also out there (a couple had rented golf carts) and we could ask them to point in the right direction. We got a bit of a late start since we had gone to the prison but it didn’t matter since we no longer needed to raise two grand for Asia. We were dropped off in yeshiva from the prison and had a bit of lunch or something. Then Adam and I prepared to go out and collect. I heard one of the guys was on Carlisle St w/ a sign reading “Free Hugs” so I made my own sign that read “Deluxe Hugs $2” to see if it’d work (never got the opportunity to test it so now the sign simply hangs on our wall). Adam donned a Captain Jack Sparrow pirate wig to go along w/ the suite he was already wearing to create some sort of “pirate-businessman” look. I just wore an argyle sweater-vest and the usual white shirt/black pants.
While we were making the Hugs sign we found a bottle of chocolate liqueur which I had gotten from a wedding a while back. We cracked it open and had a bit. It was delicious! It had a wonderful chocolately flavor but still seemed a bit off because of the taste of alcohol. However, I discovered this could be remedied by the addition of milk. So there I am, performing little odds and ends while drinking large amounts of potent chocolate milk. Needless to say I was pretty lit (and had really bad heartburn – for about ten minutes) by the time we went collecting.
And away we went. The first house we went to was to the father of one the kids in our bunk during camp. When we arrived the door was open and there were already others in his office dancing and singing in a circle. We joined in for a while and then everyone stopped and took turns giving him their “sales pitch.” He would then reach into his desk and give them cash. When we explained we were collecting for Yeshivabound.com, he immediately gave us $120 cash!
We decided to just go to every big house we could find. We went right to the next house. We weren’t sure if this next one was Jewish and were about to check it out when two girls informed us that it indeed it was Jewish – but no one was most likely home – oh and it’s a girl’s dormitory. Moving on to the next house.
We for the most part collected an average of $5 per home. One family we went to was someone we had met once before at a Shobbos table. The Mrs. gave us $40 American and then brought us inside and gave us a lunch consisting of schnitzel, chicken, cholent, soda, and mashka! We ate our hearty lunch there while watching Sesame Street.
We finished collecting after a couple of hours since people were beginning to start their Purim seudas. For such a short time we raised a good amount of cash which of course will be put toward yeshiva expenses. We headed back to the dorm to chill before heading to the Procel’s for a Purim seuda.
When we arrived it was mostly the YG shluchim, a few bochurim, and R. and Mrs. Procel and family. What ensued was a huge series of l”chaims. One after the other and in pretty good sized shot glasses at that. Every time I finished a l”chaim for one shliach, another would immediately pour me another. Despite the large amount of alcohol, I seemingly felt fine – until I stood up. Then it was more lke “ksdi’m prty wsted hmmm”, but that just meant I fit in with the crowd.
Adam, a friend Shia Karp, and I wobbled out of the Procel’s and went to a nearby fabrengen where I believe I just fell asleep at the table for an unknown amount of time. Next thing I know my buddies are waking me up to go to yet another fabrengen. However, we arrived to discover it was already over. We decided to walk to the beach and back in order to chill out. It worked. When we arrived back at YG I was pretty much sober. I drank like a liter of water (falling asleep in the middle and spilling it everywhere) and guess what? No hangover!
As you know we had decided we want to go to Asia for shlichus on Pesach. Change of plans. Not that we couldn’t make it, in fact we most likely would have gone to Cambodia. It’s just that an opportunity came up and we grabbed it.
We got jobs! We had gotten word that there was someone running a Pesach resort who needed two more guys to work. I got the number and the name (R. Klufkon) and called as soon as I could. He answered and I gave my sales pitch. I soon found out the job was perfect for us. What he needed were two guys to help the mashgiach part of the time and to take care of the kids part of the time. I have experience as a Pesach mashgiach and we both have worked w/ children. He wanted me to email him details about us, our age, and to meet us in person. Luckily we already wrote two cover letters detailing our work experience (which I realized is pretty extensive) and whatnot. So I sent them in.
The next day I called him and set up a time to meet in his home that evening. When we arrived it seemed as if he had already decided to hire us. Instead of him interviewing us, it was more like us interviewing him. We hardly spoke but ask questions. He told us all about the program, where it is, how long he’s been doing it (22 years), and what we would be doing. Our job would be three parts; helping the mashgiach and chef w/ nick-nacks around the kitchen, being the friendly face of the program (ie. Going around during meals seeing that everyone is accommodated), and taking the older boys for a couple hours a day to do whatever while two young women took the younger boys and girls to do whatever. He took us to his office and showed us a map of the grounds, pictures, the rooms, the trips, and all that good stuff. He took us back to the living-room and said we shouldn’t make a decision just yet; rather we should think about it and give him an answer. He said in the meantime he’d put everyone else on hold until we did! If we said yes, we were hired, if not, then he’s get one of the other guys (I found out there really were others applying for the job).
Heck we were sold.
So now we have our Pesach set up for us. Thank G-d. We could’ve gone to Asia if we wanted to, but something better came our way.
A little bit before Purim, Adam and I heard that a few bochurim were needed to read Megillah in prison. We volunteered and were picked to go to Port Phillip Prison w/ the Jewish chaplain, Mrs. Rubin.
That Purim morning I was up at 9:00 (despite being up till 3:45) and davened shacharis at YC, the Jewish school down the street. While I was there I was sure to set up a little box and put the Yeshivabound.com card on it to raise a few dollars. Naturally there was a hiccup w/ getting our megillahs but we borrowed and we were finally on our way (10 minutes late).
We finally set out to Mrs Rubin’s house. Adam and I were to go to Port Phillip Prison while the two other guys w/ us, Yaakov Backman and Hershel Gross, were going to MRC another prison nearby. When we arrived we were greeted by a very enthusiastic and cheery blond woman who was the very Mrs. Rubin that we were looking for. She gave us a couple bags of hamentachen and a box of cherry nougats (which we munched on the way).
We all piled in the car and we were heading out. On the way there it occurred to me that this Mrs. Rubin had the perfect personality for her job. It seemed to me that she was the type of character that maintained a cheery air yet also encompassed a sensitivity and concern for the troubles of those around her – qualities I imagine are crucial to her position. She was also very experienced, some 17 years if I recall correctly. Probably the most distinguishing quality I detected was that she was definitely dedicated to her job and to the people she helped. Her shlichus to the prisons went beyond simply visiting the Jewish inmates and giving them what they need for food and holidays etc. Her program also offered legal support before and stayed in touch even after the person left prison. I could really tell, from the way she spoke, that she genuinely felt for these inmates w/ a true sincerity. She had even put up her house as collateral for bail so a Jew would not have to sit in jail until trial (and found innocent). She was quite an inspiring woman.
We had dropped the guys off at MRC and headed off to Port Phillip Prison. When we arrived we began to get through security. While the guys at MRC had to go through a whole bunch of red tape and even a retina scan, we had a fairly easy time getting through being that PPP is a privately run prison while MRC is Gov-t run. We signed in, put our stuff in the X-ray machine (two pairs of Teffilin, a box of cherry nougats, a small bag of hamentachen, and a small shaloch manos, along w/ our hats and jackets) and passed through the metal detector.They then briefly rummaged through the stuff by hand and let us through. Then began our passage through a series of doors. Mrs. Rubin’s key wouldn’t work for the first door but they fixed it or something and we got through. Then another door, which lead to a turnstile, which went right into another door, and finally we were actually in the facility.
It was spacey. We found ourselves in an open grassy area w/ a sidewalk passing through. There were different buildings around for different things. We walked up the path to yet another door. It was unlocked after we were properly identified. We walked passed a building that contained classrooms and other various things for activities to our right. To our left was a chain link fence which beyond it had some units where prisoners stayed. Of course, we reached another door which was unlocked by a guard in which we entered into what seem to be the most somber area of the prison. One thing I noticed was that the prison grounds had a lot of space and this area, which contained the newest unit, had the most. It was quite a scene straight out of the movies. What met our eyes what a huge area populated by very unhealthy and patchy grass. It was in the corner of the complex and the towering concrete walls of the perimeter were visible from all sides. The walls were menacing, enormously tall with large black numbers labeling each section. A single concrete walkway, sparsely lined with young seemingly dead trees, lead to a single building in the distance in the middle of this dismal area. It was also hopelessly windy. My hat had blown off and rolled into a dirty patch of land. We went to the building and through the heavy door, and then another door, and then we were inside.
Inside was surprising. It was nothing like what you would expect from and American prison. Not at all. It looked somewhat like a dormitory. To my left there was a cafeteria area dotted w/ round tables and chairs where some inmates clad in green T-shirts and pants were sitting. To my right was a lounge looking area which had comfortable looking chairs and couches and beyond that inmates were enjoying games of pool. Stairs to my left lead to the cells which surrounded us on all sides above. I looked up at them and they appeared to be small single person cells. Right in the middle was what looked like a control center where we could sign in. all jokes aside, the place seemed a lot like a Sunday afternoon in my old yeshiva. Of course, no matter what it was like inside the facility, you need only to look out the window at those forbidding walls to be sharply reminded that true freedom was beyond your reach.
When we walked in we were greeted by a, not fat, but roundish man w/ a childlike face a little shorter than I. We’ll call him Mr. A He was happy to see us and as providence would have it there was yet another Jewish man in the very same unit! We went to sign in while our friend went to go fetch the other Jew, Mr. B. We went into a small room next to the stair case which appeared to be a classroom of sorts. It was all white illuminated by florescent lights. There was a white board on each side of the room (the room could be partitioned in half) and in the middle was a round white table surrounded by five white chairs. It had two large windows looking out to the field beyond until your gaze collided w/ the concrete perimeter. There was also a window looking back inside the cafeteria area where I could observe the inmates mopping and putting away the chairs and such. Soon our fellow Jews entered and we heartily shook hands. We were introduced as young rabbis in training which they seemed to find somewhat intriguing. Adam unrolled the Megillah while Mrs. Rubin found out how they were doing and did some catching up with them.
Adam began to read, after having them say the brachot, and what followed was a very sweet sight. These two inmates, who were sentenced for crimes a little more hardcore than tax-evasion, sat w/ child-like attention. Mr. A especially, whose face I mentioned appeared child-like, rarely broke his gaze at Adam and the Megillah. Mr. B sat and listened with a faint smile on his face as he listened to the words. Every time we booed Haman they would hit the table or clap briefly while breaking into large grins. After Adam read and rolled up the scroll Mr. B reached over the table and grabbed the end because he wanted to touch it. Mrs. Rubin gave a bag of hamentachen to Mr. A and the shloch manos bag to Mr. B and explained that they need to trade to fulfill the mitzvah and then they could eat the goodies together. They both wanted, and expected, to put on Teffilin – and all the other inmates could see! It was beautiful. They did so and began to chat w/ us. Mr. A was happy to say he was going free after 16 more weeks. He had gotten bad break. The day he got sentenced, a newspaper ran an article about the same judge and how he was giving sentences that were too short. The judge had read it.
These men were easily double my age, they had committed what they did and were now in prison, yet, in the presence of the Megillah and the shloch manos, they seemed so much to me like children. I don’t even know if they even knew what Purim is about, yet these two men treated the Megillah, shloch manos, and Teffilin, w/ such a mindful sincerity that it could have inspired any Jew.
The time finally came where it was time to go. We went to sign out when I remembered that I wanted to give the men a quick word about the holiday. I gave them a quick d”var torah about how we learn from the Megillah, that even though we need to do all we can to help ourselves, in the end Jews trust in Hashem to get us by. I felt so accomplished as we left the facility.
We had to go through the same series of doors to get out which took a while but we were finally free. Mrs. Rubin was very appreciative and told us we had done really well and even said she would like to have us over for Shobbos sometime. We told her we would love to accompany her occasionally on Friday to put Teffilin on the inmates which she thought was a swell idea. We agreed we would stay in touch and let her know whenever there is a Friday where we are available.
It felt extremely good to have done something so significant. I believe Mrs. Rubin had done us the favor by giving us such an opportunity. I can’t think of anything more meaningful I could have done that Purim morning.
I got a box. It was from my grandparents in Colorado. It was sweet but seemed kind of random. I couldn’t fathom what it would be for. However when I opened it it immediately became apparent. The chocolates and card encased in a pink envelope indicated that this was a Valentine’s day package. I am the only bochur who got something for Valentine’s day. It was perfectly normal. It doesn’t matter how old I am, whether I’m in yeshiva or college - heck I could be a rav in a huge shul, My grandparents will always send me something three times a year; Chanuka, my birthday, and Valentine’s day.
I laughed off theirony and rummaged through the box. What immediately caught my eye was a canister of chocolate covered almonds. Mmmmm. My granparents, knowing that I’m Jewish and keep kosher, only get me things from the local kosher mart so I didn’t have to worry before popping one in my mouth. The wonderful chocolate flavor burst into my taste buds accompanied by the savory crunchy texture of the almond within. Ohhh it was sooo good.
Then it dawned upon me. Chocolate covered almonds, chocolate hearts, and caramel lollipops. My grandparents made sure it was all kosher. But they didn’t know anything about cholov Yisroel! No way. I looked at it with fiery eyes. It would have been better if they had just sent non-kosher stuff. It would be better if I didn’t already taste it. I looked at the goodies. The goodies looked at me. I figured I’d be nice and give it to the non-Jewish cooks, but when I got up to leave the box called my name. the taste of the almond lingered in my mouth and the goodies laid there in their seductive pose just calling to me. The temptation burned within, clawing through my chest, OMG just one more! I knew what must be done. I picked up the box, rushed out the room, down the hallway, and sent the box plummeting into the abyss of the rubbish bin. I went back to my room relieved. I rid myself of the evil spirits of temptation. Still, you could always take it back out…
