Jeffry grew up like a typical American, educated in public schools with the expectation to move on to college. When the time came, he approached his mother to discuss how they could pay for his tuition. She explained that she lacked the means — or the will — to cover the entire amount, and she suggested that he take a job while in school.
Having no choice, Jeffry looked for work that would accommodate school and work, and found a job as a waiter in a local wedding hall. After finishing his day in college, he spent his evenings waitering, and for the most part that covered his tuition. One thing he noticed at the job was that at the end of the evening, the hall threw away all the leftover food — whole portions of freshly baked goods and expensive delicacies. Seeing so much food going to waste troubled Jeffry deeply.
The young waiter approached his boss and questioned why they trashed such posh food when many homeless people went hungry every night. Hearing Jeffry’s concern, the wedding hall owner affirmed that if he wished to distribute it to whomever he’d wished, he could. And so, from that night on, Jeffry went through the leftovers, packaged them, and distributed them to the vagrants of his city. The beggars were delighted by Jeffry’s efforts; never had they been “treated” to such generosity.
As he did this for a few months, Jeffry noticed that while many of the homeless and hungry he encountered eagerly partook of what he brought them, one man from the crowd stood aside and never took from the free food. He was always present, but he adamantly refused to partake. Jeffry decided that he must inquire why this man was particularly snubbing his generosity.
“Why do you move aside when I distribute the food?” Jeffry asked the man. “Aren’t you hungry like everyone else?”
“I hate Jews,” answered the poor man in a rough tone. “I’m not going to derive any benefit from a person with Jewish blood running through his veins.”
The boy was troubled. “OK, fine. I understand that you hate Jews, but what does that have to do with me?”
“What does this have to do with you?!” the man snapped back. “You are Jewish!”
Jeffry was baffled. “Jewish?! You think I’m Jewish?”
The homeless person nodded and said, “Yes, you are a Jew!”
“How are you so sure of that?”
“I’ll tell you why. You are a gentle soul with a kind and caring heart. Such kindliness and greatness of character is a telltale sign of a Jew. Gathering leftover food for poor and hungry people is something that only a Jew would do. That is how I know — with utmost certainty — that you have Jewish blood, and I want to have nothing to do with you. I’d rather starve.”
Upon hearing this, when Jeffry next went home, he immediately approached his mother and asked her if the pauper was correct. The mother had no choice but to admit. “Yes,” she affirmed, “I was once a Jew when I was a young child, but all that is history. I have left Judaism. I’m a total goy, and so are you!”
Hearing that from his mother only opened deeper questions in Jeffry’s heart. Later that day, he decided to pay a visit to the local shul to find out more about his newly discovered identity. There, the Rav explained that since his mother is Jewish, although she doesn’t act so, he is automatically Jewish. The Rav also explained that a Jew cannot become a goy, no matter how he acts.
From that point on, Jeffry began to learn more about his heritage until he left everything and came to learn in Eretz Yisrael. Today, he is one of the successful bachurim in a well-known yeshiva in Yerushalayim.
This story reminds us about the character that we possess. It is intrinsically part of our DNA — something we can’t overlook. This poor man saw with clarity that this boy was a Jew, although the boy himself was clueless. He had no idea about his illustrious lineage, yet it shined through the many covered layers.
During the month of Elul, we reflect on our layers. We come to recognize the inner beauty we have — the cheilek Elokah mi’maal. By reminding ourselves of our inner beauty and by connecting to it, it’ll reflect on our true selves and bring us to new levels of achievement.
