If walls could talk

MICHAEL SIEFF
 

Somehow that scene was unusually heart-warming, connecting so many facets of the intricate network that is the Chev – pulling them seamlessly together to deliver a minyan, a festive meal, a mohel and a Jewish name for this tiny boy, our youngest client.

I realised then why visiting that shul was invariably an inspiring and sobering experience for me. It provides me with a sense of perspective and a resolve to live life to the full. 

Imagine, if those walls could talk, the stories they would tell! Stories of great joy and deep sorrow; of birthdays, second barmitzvahs (even third ones); of Kadish said for those who have passed on; of prayers for good health; of young men who join the minyan on Friday night; of Rosh Hashanah, Pesach and a million mazeltov wishes for simchas – and of older men called to the Torah for the very last time.   

It’s not often a bris is held there, but this wasn’t the first time and not long ago a batmitzvah was celebrated there too, for another special child.

There’s a vibrant common thread to all of this: the message that life is precious, that time waits for no one. That little shul, in its way, measures each individual journey and teaches us the value of every year, every moment. I guess you could say that all shuls do that, but there’s something unique about the way this one does it. 

That’s what motivates me to go there as often as I can, not only to get a warm welcome and an aliyah, but because I always leave feeling energised to celebrate life.

Enjoy every moment of the holidays, whether at home or away and travel safely.

May our partnership continue to thrive!

Please feel free to communicate with me on feedback@thechev.org.za