specifically on the day of this trip, do we need to daven quickly, under pressure? Specifically on the day of the trip, it is much more appropriate that we daven slowly and patiently!
Moishy had heard a few stories about the greatness of davening Aleinu L’shabeiach and about the segulah and the protection that this tefillah offers. That morning he made a determined decision to say Aleinu L’shabeiach patiently and with kavanah. He chose specifically this tefillah because it is a paragraph said at the end of davening, and when we say it there is a tendency to swallow the words and to hurry out of the shul. This, even after we’ve been warned: Rabbosai, don’t get confused – Aleinu L’shabeiach is not Tefillas Haderech!
But this time in particular, it actually was a sort of Tefillas Haderech...
Moishy was climbing on Har Hagilboa with his friends, on a track that takes three hours. They walked on high rocks, where one must struggle to maintain balance every second. While they were walking, Moishy suddenly lost his footing and slipped. He rolled down the slope, unable to stop, like a ball rolling down a long slide. He went flying in that way for at least 38 meters!
His friends and the staff stood up at the top, terrified, unable to do a thing. They followed him with their eyes until he disappeared from sight. During those terrifying moments they had no idea what was happening with Moishy.
It was Moishy himself who revealed his whereabouts to them. He got stuck in a tree, which broke his fall, and called for help. The wild growth around him was flourishing, so his friends did not see him from where they were standing, but as they strained to hear the source of the sound, they understood that it was Moishy calling them, and they summoned help.
The staff that came to save Moishy found him fully conscious and even smiling. For two hours he had sat there in tremendous heat, and he had everything he needed. His bag had rolled down with him, so he was able to eat and drink. Even his glasses got caught in his peyos and rolled along with him and remained completely whole.
The rescuers were amazed to see him alive and well. The first aid equipment they had brought with them turned out to be unnecessary. After a thorough examination they announced, “You can continue your trip!”
The trip, of course, did not continue as planned. The friends burst into dance and happy song over Hashem’s chassadim, which are never-ending, and over His miracles and wonders that are with us at all times.
When Moishy came home following the eventful, emotionally- and physically draining day, he told us what had happened to him, and our hearts skipped a beat upon hearing the entire story.
“Abba,” he told me, “I feel that the kaballah that I took upon myself, to say Aleinu L’shabeiach from inside the siddur, with kavanah, is what saved me.
