Toward the close of summer 2007, the twelfth-grade bunk of Camp Toras Chessed was excited to hear that they’d be biking down the trail in the local state park. All the boys prepared everything they needed for the journey, and off they went. Trenching through the forest, the boys found the excitement that they were anticipating — an enjoyable journey, the shade from the sun, and navigating through the challenging mountains.
All their excitement came to an end when their friend, Nosson H., toppled over and got severely injured. The boy before him had fallen off his bike, and created a hazard in the middle of the trail that caused Nosson to stumble over and land right on his jaw.
Seeing the severity, his counselor immediately called Hatzalah. He was transported to the nearest hospital, where his mother had come to be by his side. After a thorough examination, the hospital staff realized that they lacked the medical team to adequately treat him, and they instructed them to attempt a transfer to Westchester Hospital.
When the hospital got word of the case, they offered to send their medical team via helicopter and have Nosson transferred there quickly. His family decided that the helicopter wasn’t necessary, and they instead traveled by ambulance. They got to Westchester around midnight and had the maxillofacial surgeon who was on duty tend to his needs. After putting his jaw back together, the surgeon updated them about the prognosis and how to proceed with the proper care.
While listing off Nosson’s necessary treatment and follow-up care, the surgeon told them in his tired voice that Nosson was very lucky to be wearing braces on his teeth. “Had you not been wearing them, your teeth would’ve broken from the fall, and there would’ve been much worse damage. But besides for your teeth being saved, the wound could’ve been more harmful, causing severe damage to your jaw and even endangering your airway. This fall could’ve been life-threatening! Fortunate for you, those braces held your jaw in place despite the injury, sparing you much damage. You’re lucky!”
It was only Nosson who understood the depth of the hashgachah behind what they were saying:
Several weeks prior to the summer, Nosson had gone to the orthodontist to have his braces removed. After sitting for some time in the waiting room, the receptionist came and told them that, due to some unexpected delays, their appointment had been postponed — something that had never occurred in the past.
At first, Nosson was very disturbed. He had been waiting to have that annoying wire removed from his mouth ever since he’d gotten it, and now, as he’s in the office to get them finally taken off, it’s being pushed off even longer? What was even more bothersome was that the summer was fast approaching, and Nosson wouldn’t be able to get them off while he was in camp, meaning he’d be wearing them for many more weeks because of this delay. Yet, Nosson understood Who all this is coming from, and he accepted it willingly.
After hearing the maxillofacial surgeon’s words, he understood why the removal of his braces was delayed. It was all preplanned by Hashem, orchestrated to bring along a yeshua that was waiting for him several weeks down the road.
