Part I
The early years of 5700...
The Shimony's home was in great turmoil. A letter had arrived
announcing the upcoming visit of Uncle Levi. Preparation for
his arrival began immediately and much cleaning and scrubbing
took place. The daily menu was slashed to the bare minimum in
order to save every penny. Uncle was scheduled to arrive
before Chanuka and Ima Shimony planned to buy the choice
fruits and vegetables in the market, in addition to baking
rich cakes and cookies.
The day finally dawned. As was customary, Uncle Levy arrived
by boat and as soon as he debarked and reached the hotel
where he was staying, he sent word of his arrival. Abba
Shimony rushed over and took his guest directly to the Kosel.
Uncle Levy was deeply moved and shed many tears amidst
fervent prayers. They decided to walk to the Shimony home,
located in Beis Yisroel, by foot, so as better to absorb the
sights of Yerusholayim.
When they arrived, the three girls, Chedva, Tzila and Yisca,
were dressed in their Shabbos attire. The table was set with
a white cloth and heaps of food were laden upon it. The
previous day, Ima Shimony had busied herself searching the
market for the best, freshest fruits and condiments. She had
secured such rarities as pears, apples, dried fruits, dates
and nuts. She had baked lekach, which in Yerusholayim
were the light, sugar-sprinkled cookies that graced every
simcha.
Abba Shimony sat at the head of the table, with Uncle Levy at
his right. When Abba urged his guest to partake of the bounty
prepared in his honor, he took a cookie and smiled. "We call
these eier kichlach," he said. "By us, lekach
is honey cake. But never mind, this is just like Dovid
Hamelech says, `Ki lekach tov nosati lochem.' It is
very good!" He nodded in Ima's direction with a smile.
But Uncle Levy was not particularly interested in the
delicacies served him. All he wanted to know was how this
great transformation had taken place. Uncle Levy was born in
Yerusholayim but had left for America long before. He was
excited about the new neighborhoods that had sprung up in the
city and Abba Shimony was no less eager to tell the stories
he had heard from his father and grandfather about how the
city had been built.
*
"Have you heard the latest news?" Henna was saying to a
neighbor as they both sat in their large courtyard in the Old
City, their fingers busy sewing as they chattered away. "It
seems that your nephew, R' Yosef Rivlin, is very sick. They
say he has a dibbuk!"
"That can't be!" exclaimed Chaya Tzviya. "I saw him just
yesterday and he was in perfectly good health! We even talked
a bit before he went off to learn."
"That's what's peculiar about his disease. He can seem normal
at times. But when he gets on the subject, he talks wildly.
His disease is called the Desert Dibbuk."
"Sounds new to me. Are you sure you aren't inventing
this?"
Just then Zelda, a young immigrant girl from Germany,
arrived. She entered the courtyard and sat herself down with
a sigh. "I've got to relax a few minutes. I find it so hard
to get used to doing all the work without a shikse
maid. It's work, work, work from morning to evening."
"So what did you do today, Zelda?" Chaya Tzvia asked, raising
her eyes momentarily from her sewing.
"I began my day very early by fetching water from the well. I
drank some and then davenned. Then I sliced up some
loaves of bread and made sandwiches for my brothers to take
to cheder, while my mother was busy washing and
dressing them. After they went off, I had to wash the floor
and then go to the batrak market, which I despise.
It's an ordeal haggling with the Arab vendors who cheat you
and yell at you. On my way home, I stopped by the grocer for
several fresh loaves of bread. We eat so much more bread here
than we did in Germany, but I love the halva that you use as
a cheap spread. It's also very nutritious, they say."
"And fattening," added Henna, with a glance at Zelda's
waist.
"Ima was waiting impatiently for me. We didn't have too much
time to cook the vegetables before the men and boys returned.
Besides, there was the milk to boil. The milkman had just
delivered the raw milk and you can't drink it without boiling
it, like we did in Germany. The men came home and we had to
slice up the bread, dish out the soup, wash up afterwards and
sweep. It isn't easy being the oldest girl in the family."
She looked around, expecting some sympathy, but the women
were busy with their mending. "So what's new around here?"
"We were discussing R' Yosef Rivlin's dibbuk. D'you
know what that is?"
"Back home we heard about dibbuks. Is it a common
thing here?"
"Oh, don't worry. This one is a different kind. It's called
the Desert Dibbuk."
"What's that?"
"Well, they say R' Yosef keeps talking about going out to the
desert and building up the wilderness. Going beyond the walls
of Yerusholayim... But that's sheer madness, everyone knows.
There are bandits and murderous Arabs and wild animals out
there. Who'd be crazy enough to risk leaving the security of
the city walls?" Chaya Tzviya said, shaking her head.
"They're talking about sending him to Russia for treatment,"
Henna said. "They have doctors who can treat mental diseases,
if that's what it is."
"Good. Poor fellow, just recently married, too," sighed Chaya
Tzvia.
*
Several weeks later, the same women met again but the news
about the dibbuk had an interesting twist to it. R'
Yosef Rivlin had gone to Russia but sent letters home telling
his family that the dibbuk was a contagious
disease.
"Our family here is very keen about the idea. In fact, they
are all collecting money to purchase a piece of desert land.
I'll be back soon with a large sum of money, b'ezras
Hashem."
*
Abba Shimony concluded his story, "It was some time before
the neighborhood of Nachalas Shiva was actually built. The
purchasing of the lot was a story in itself!"
Uncle Levy looked tired, so Abba offered to walk him back to
the hotel, which he agreed to, but not before heartily
thanking Ima for the lavish refreshments she had prepared.
[Part II to come]
