Ireland is a beautiful country, which we are getting to know very well as we traverse its length and breadth in search of Jewish inhabitants.
Yesterday, we were en route to Kilkenny, a 90-mile trip, to meet Vered, one of our contacts. Halfway into our trip, we debated making a quick stop in New Ross, to drop off some Jewish materials at Rosalind’s home. We were somewhat crunched for time, but decided it would be best to visit Rosalind then. Sara, Rosalind’s daughter, welcomed us warmly. Rosalind was there as well, and we had a lovely conversation. She told us how the family settled in Ireland. Her grandfather was leaving Europe by boat, with dreams of settling in America, specifically New York. When the boat stopped in Cork, Ireland, he thought he heard New York, and as they say, the rest is history. G‑d runs the world. Sara, his great-granddaughter, the third generation born and bred in Ireland, maintains aWhen the boat stopped in Cork, Ireland, he thought he heard New York proud Jewish identity.
“Rosalind, can we put a mezuzah on your front door?”
“Sure, that would be really nice.”
Rosalind and Sara watched with great interest as we said the blessing and affixed the Mezuzah.
“Sara, how about we put a Mezuzah on the door of your apartment, too?”
“That’s a nice thought, rabbis. But I’m afraid that people will see it and ask me questions about Judaism that I won’t be able to answer.”
“Don’t worry, we have plenty of books with us that can teach you all about Judaism.”
She perused our selection and bought two books. We also directed her to Chabad.org, where we knew she would find a wealth of information.
We had thought this little detour would only take five minutes, not two hours! But we couldn't complain—two homes with new mezuzahs in New Ross, Ireland was a wonderful thing. We continued on to Vered, hoping that she wouldn't be too upset at our tardiness.
Thank G‑d, she was happy to see us, and grateful that we had made the long drive just to spend time with her. We discussed many topics in Judaism, especially Ahavat Yisroel—loving one’s fellow Jew. By divine providence, Vered had Jewish guests—a couple she knew from her Israeli army days, who visiting from Raanana, Israel. The husband was flabbergasted that Chabad had caught up with him in Kilkenny, Ireland, and told us that although he is not religious, he couldn't refuse our offer of tefillin. Vered had already made sure that most of her doors had mezuzahs, but realized while we were there that two doors had been neglected.He was flabbergasted that Chabad had caught up with him in Kilkenny, Ireland We were quickly able to remedy the situation.
It was approaching evening, so we said our goodbyes, and headed to the car, which served as our office as well. We had to make some phone calls to map out the next day. We called David first. “Rabbi, no need to wait for tomorrow. Why don’t you come over now?”
By the time we found David’s home, it was 8:30 pm. David is originally from Israel, and was thrilled at the prospect of being able to talk freely about his Jewish heritage. Since sundown is past 9 pm here at the moment, he was able to put on tefillin as well. We spoke and philosophized together until the wee hours of the morning.
Before we left, in keeping with the theme of the day, we asked David if he would like a mezuzah on his door. “Yes, certainly. Thank you, rabbis. I would love that.”
David’s home was the fourth to be graced with a mezuzah, a proud symbol of Jewish identity.
It was now time to go to our hotel, and gather our strength for another day’s work.
