He was tall, and definitely ultra-Orthodox.
Chassidic-style vest, long black coat. Long black beard. And the
trademark white socks.
I was touched by how helpful he was to his jeans-clad seatmate. He asked her if she would like some cookies. Helped her with her luggage in the overhead bin - especially helpful, as he was about a foot taller than her. Congenially chatted with her child. In fact, he stood out as the most helpful person on the airplane, and I was proud!
***
About an hour before I checked in for the El Al flight, I spent awhile on the phone with my friend Edna who had just spent Shabbat at a Project Inspire Shabbaton in Connecticut. Project Inspire is a division of Aish Hatorah International, directed toward the Orthodox community. Its goals are twofold: to continue to inspire them in the their faith, and to promote Jewish unity among all Jews by inspiring them to reach out in friendship to all of their fellow Jews. My parents, actually, were at the Shabbaton, too. So were over 1,000 Orthodox Jews, about 1/3 of them Chassidic. Both Edna and my mother raved about the Shabbaton. The speakers were from the cream of the crop. Rabbi Lau, chief rabbi of Israel and an incredible human being was the guest speaker. The Traveling Chassidim, a group of singing Chassidic men, musically uplifted all in attendance. Every detail was attended to with professionalism. Humor, wit, spirituality and inspiration were all here for the taking.
It struck me that both my mother and Edna noted how many Chassidic Jews were in attendance, and they were all from the New York area. Some of the speakers emphasized that when Orthodox Jews - especially those who are very identifiable as such - get out there in the world, they must pay extra attention to their fellow human beings, as many will be assessing all religious Jews based on their behavior. Going above and beyond their call of duty in being a mensch, therefore, was exceedingly, exponentially critical.
***
As the flight parked at the gate and everyone simultaneously unclicked their seatbelts, I glanced at my ultra-Orthodox compatriot. My eye fell on his carry-on, because there, to my utter surprise, was emblazoned the words "Project Inspire Annual Shabbaton...2013."
I wondered about causality. Was this open-minded mensch just the type of guy to go to a Project Inspire Shabbaton? Or did the Shabbaton impact him to an incredible, noticeable degree? I'll never know. But, coming off of the heels of our own JFX Shabbaton, it was yet another example of the positive impact that a Shabbaton can have on people - the energy to get inspired!
I was touched by how helpful he was to his jeans-clad seatmate. He asked her if she would like some cookies. Helped her with her luggage in the overhead bin - especially helpful, as he was about a foot taller than her. Congenially chatted with her child. In fact, he stood out as the most helpful person on the airplane, and I was proud!
***
About an hour before I checked in for the El Al flight, I spent awhile on the phone with my friend Edna who had just spent Shabbat at a Project Inspire Shabbaton in Connecticut. Project Inspire is a division of Aish Hatorah International, directed toward the Orthodox community. Its goals are twofold: to continue to inspire them in the their faith, and to promote Jewish unity among all Jews by inspiring them to reach out in friendship to all of their fellow Jews. My parents, actually, were at the Shabbaton, too. So were over 1,000 Orthodox Jews, about 1/3 of them Chassidic. Both Edna and my mother raved about the Shabbaton. The speakers were from the cream of the crop. Rabbi Lau, chief rabbi of Israel and an incredible human being was the guest speaker. The Traveling Chassidim, a group of singing Chassidic men, musically uplifted all in attendance. Every detail was attended to with professionalism. Humor, wit, spirituality and inspiration were all here for the taking.
It struck me that both my mother and Edna noted how many Chassidic Jews were in attendance, and they were all from the New York area. Some of the speakers emphasized that when Orthodox Jews - especially those who are very identifiable as such - get out there in the world, they must pay extra attention to their fellow human beings, as many will be assessing all religious Jews based on their behavior. Going above and beyond their call of duty in being a mensch, therefore, was exceedingly, exponentially critical.
***
As the flight parked at the gate and everyone simultaneously unclicked their seatbelts, I glanced at my ultra-Orthodox compatriot. My eye fell on his carry-on, because there, to my utter surprise, was emblazoned the words "Project Inspire Annual Shabbaton...2013."
I wondered about causality. Was this open-minded mensch just the type of guy to go to a Project Inspire Shabbaton? Or did the Shabbaton impact him to an incredible, noticeable degree? I'll never know. But, coming off of the heels of our own JFX Shabbaton, it was yet another example of the positive impact that a Shabbaton can have on people - the energy to get inspired!
