Hashgochoh Protis V

“The tenth man”

Bournemouth, חשון תשע"ה

They were nine Yidden and the time to start  שחרית arrived. It didn't look like there will be a מנין any time soon as it was Thursday, when most of the Shabbos visitors were still out of town.

But I am getting ahead of myself; let's start from last year:

London, אלול תשע"ד

The new year was fast approaching so we decided to wish old Aunty Malka and even older Uncle Meir a לשנה טובה in person.  When we arrived they were very happy to see us but her health was failing and his nerves frazzled from caring for his wife. We realised that they need a holiday - urgently. The earliest possible Shabbos we could arrange a flat in Bournemouth would be פרשת לך לך, well after ראש השנהhowever we surmised that the mere fact that they were going for a break will help them tidy them over until then.

We confirmed the booking with the landlord and made the necessary Shabbos arrangements.

But I am getting ahead of myself - again; let's start from the beginning:
Meir and Malka were privileged to live in Eretz Yisroel and to top it off the Rebbe lived in the same apartment block. With time they became like close family, with Meir milling with the Gaboim and Malka becoming part of the extended family. When they decided to leave the holy land they kept up the קשר for some time but soon this was also a distant memory.

On the morning that this story happened – a good twenty years later - Meir was looking for a  מניןand when he was told at the Normandie hotel that there isn't one on the premises, but he should be able to find one down the road, a walk of about five minutes. He followed the instructions and soon noticed an open door.

Whilst he was approaching the house where the Rebbe - by now a son of his old neighbour - the Gaboim started to despair as the clock stroke eight and this meant they will be late.  Suddenly they saw a man in his seventies with a Tallisbag tucked under his arm walking in and nonchalantly enquiring about a מנין.  Short of jumping through the roof they welcomed him with such joy peppering him with an array of questions in fast-fire fashion: "Meir! How on earth did you drop in here?!", “how did you find us?!” and the like.

They were nine Yidden and one more - the time to start שחרית is now.

The Master Planner arranged it so that old Meir and Malka should come to town Punkt when they were needed