By Rabbi David Ashear
Many years ago, Moshe* and Shifrah* grew up in the same neighborhood in Tunisia. As hashgacha would later prove, these two children were meant to become united as one, but the road to bringing them together would not be a simple one, as Moshe’s family moved to a different continent when he was a teenager.
When Shifrah graduated from high school, her parents sent her to a renowned seminary in England. A few days after she arrived, she began feeling ill. She suffered from severe headaches and fever, and at times was too weak to walk. Doctors conducted various tests but could not determine the cause of her illness. She eventually felt better, but relapsed a few months later.
Doctors, including several eminent specialists, again failed to diagnose the cause of her debilitating weakness. She persevered at the seminary until Pesach vacation drew near. After discussing it with her parents over the phone, she made plans to visit her married sister in Toronto for Pesach and remain there to rest until summer. Flight arrangements were put in place.
But then, several days before her travel date, Shifrah received an unexpected phone call from Mimi*, her other married sister who lived in Sao Paulo, Brazil. “I know you’re planning to go to Toronto,” Mimi said, “but the weather in Canada can be harsh. In your weakened condition, you would be much better off in a mild, sunny climate.”
Shifrah agreed, and with the approval of her parents and her Torontonian sister, made a last-minute change of plans and flew to Sao Paulo. There, she made an immediate recovery and quickly settled into a normal routine. About a month later, an elderly shochet in Sao Paulo, originally from Tunisia, took ill and was hospitalized. The sisters, who knew the shochet from their hometown, went to the hospital to visit him.
During the visit, he suggested to Mimi that her younger sister be introduced to a boy named Moshe Hadad.* “He is a fine young man, a real ben Torah. He is in town now, on vacation from yeshivah.” Moshe’s family had moved from Tunisia to Sao Paulo nine years earlier. His outstanding mind and abilities had been recognized by the rabbi in Sao Paulo, who had encouraged him to attend a top-tier yeshivah in New York, where he had been learning for seven years. He had come home for Pesach and had intended to travel back to New York the previous week, but remained for a relative’s first yahrzeit.
Miriam called her parents and they approved of the shidduch, having known the Hadads from Tunisia. Shifrah and Moshe met and got engaged in Sao Paulo. Today they have a large family and are disseminating Torah to hundreds of people in New York. (Living Emunah on Shidduchim)
Reprinted from the Parshas Vayeira 5785 email of The Weekly Vort.
