The Moment: Issue 1028

Living Higher

Sholi Rosenblum is the founder of the Brooklyn-based Lihisaneg organization, which, among other things, distributes packages to hospital-bound patients, spreading joy to cholei Yisrael Rachmana litzlan. Last week, Sholi shared with an audience the awesome power of a seemingly minor “Elul kabbalah,” which he heard from a customer at the Bagel Hole, the store in Brooklyn where he works.

The customer told Sholi that about ten years ago, he was living in Israel, struggling after having been laid off from his job as a baker at a popular food establishment. It was during Elul, and shortly after his employment ended, he attended a shiur where the speaker extolled the virtue of accepting a small yet personal kabbalah for Chodesh Elul to keep the month at the forefront of one’s conscious. The fellow resolved that for the duration of Elul, he would only eat only in a dignified manner, using a knife and fork. It was a relatively minor resolution, but it was meaningful.

Fast-forward two weeks. He was taking a midday stroll with his kids on an Ashkelon beach, when they were hit with the aroma of freshly baked goods from a nearby bakery. The family followed their noses and purchased several chocolate Danishes and proceeded to a nearby bench to indulge. But he had his kabbalah. His kids asked if he could skip his newfound insistence on more formal manners just this one time, but he was adamant that a kabbalah was an ironclad commitment. He’d go scout for a fork and knife to enjoy his pastries.

He finally located a small cafe that sold him a plastic cutlery set. When he cut open the Danish, a green liquid oozed out of it. He returned to the bakery and showed the proprietor the suspicious product. Horrified, the owner rushed to the back, where he saw an open bottle of motor oil next to the Arab employee who was responsible for that run. A quick sampling of the motor oil revealed that it was the same liquid sitting in the Danish.