I'll Be Watching You
“This hook is reserved for Michael Levy.”
Who is Michael Levy?
Michael Levy was born blind, but he worked hard not to let his handicap get in the way of him living life and enjoying it fully. When Michael was a boy, his mother would walk him to their school every single day, taking him from their house to the school entrance.
Michael wanted so badly to walk to school by himself, just like the other boys. However, his mother always explained to him, “Michael, something could happen to you, you can’t see the potential dangers... the cars... I need to walk you to school.” But Michael was determined and every day he would count the number of steps from his house to the corner, and then count the exact amount of strides from that corner the main street, and he trained himself to recognize every tree, every lamp pole and every change in the terrain or sidewalk.
When Michael felt that he was ready to take his white cane and walk by himself, he begged and pleaded with his mother, “Please Mom, let me try to go to school by myself. I know the way; its safe for me.” Michael’s mother didn’t want to deprive him of the simple pleasure of his independence, so finally she gave in and said, “OK Michael, tomorrow you can walk to school by yourself.”
He was so excited, he could barely sleep that night. He couldn’t wait to walk to school by himself the next morning and to be just like everybody else. The big day finally arrived, and Michael left for school 15 minutes earlier than usual. He walked carefully and cautiously, counting his strides and slowly making his way alone to his school.
As he approached the school, some of his friends began cheering him on. He was so proud, and as he arrived at the school building, the security guard said to him, “Well, look at that! It’s Michael Levy, walking to school!”
A minute later he heard the security guard saying, “Oh, and good morning Mrs. Levy!” Shocked, Michael turned around and hears someone riding away on a bicycle. He yelled out loud, “Mmommm, why couldn’t you let me walk by myself?” But she was already gone, her cover blown. Michael had mixed feelings. He was disappointed that his mother had followed him to school, but he also felt special for his mother’s act of selfless love.
Michael Levy is an independent adult today, and his mother just passed away. He shared this at her funeral - how she gave him the wings to fly, but was there in the background making sure that he was OK.
“This hook is reserved for Michael Levy” is the hook that is reserved for Michael’s white cane in his synagogue, which he goes to independently, every single day. He is an important member of his community, and a wonderful role model for so many people.
At his mother's funeral, Michael concluded with two important lessons:
One, the importance of knowing how to give our children the independence that they crave, but to also wisely do our duty to make sure our children remain safe - sometimes from a distance.
Two, this story is a beautiful metaphor for our relationship with G-d. Hashem lets us fly by ourselves, and sometimes we say, “Where is G-d? How come He is not taking care of me now?” Or sometimes the opposite happens. We feel like we are doing everything by ourselves, that we are self-sufficient, and we run the risk of becoming arrogant. We must remember that just like Mrs. Levy, Hashem is always watching and guiding us in the background, and He is making sure that even if we fall, we can pick ourselves up.
Shabbat shalom,
Rabbi Koval
