It was a typical Thursday night, and my phone rang while I was busy planning and preparing for Shabbos. In fact, in some ways it was even busier than a typical Thursday, because our children had planned an evening out celebrating multiple family birthdays. My husband and the three sons with whom he learns every night had subsequently accelerated their learning schedule so that they could combine the restaurant visit with a siyum on completing Maseches Bava Basra, thereby upgrading the occasion.
In general I shy away from any unnecessary Thursday night activities so that I will not be forced to go to sleep at a really ungodly hour, especially in the winter when the days are so short. As my very wise mother-in-law puts it, “By the time you wake up on Friday morning, it seems like it’s almost time to bentch licht!”
However, since my husband’s was one of the many birthdays that the kids were so intent on celebrating, and it was a question of him attending without me or me participating as well, I had a very hard time deciding. Then one of my sons-in-law very graciously suggested that our daughter and he would host us and our guests (AKA a son and daughter-in-law and their family) for the Friday night meal.
They assured us that they would purchase most of the food and it would not be stressful for them, and that they would very much like to have us. Once they extended their very thoughtful invitation, my decision was easily made, and I decided to join the ten other members of the family plus my husband, and celebrate together.
Now back to the phone call I received on that particular Thursday night. I was about to leave the house to shop for some last minute items for Shabbos, when my sister-in-law called from the United States. She asked if I could please help her purchase a silk flower arrangement as a housewarming gift for our mutual in-laws who had just moved into a new apartment in my neighborhood.
Although it was a hectic Thursday night, I was happy to accommodate my sister-in-law’s request, and I assured her that I would try to find a floral shop that carries a suitable arrangement for them. Aside from the less-than-perfect timing, I have a very hard time making decisions even for myself, and a terrible time choosing gifts for others. So I was very conflicted as I set out on my mission, hoping for the best but expecting the worst.
I found a nice floral shop that was still open for business at that hour, and the salesgirl directed me upstairs to check out the selection of silk flower arrangements. She soon came up to assist me, and pointed out various options, some larger, some smaller, with different colors and types of flowers.
I was definitely in over my head, so I proceeded to take some photos of the most promising arrangements and sent them to my American sister-in-law to have her help me decide.
With her long distance encouragement, I ultimately settled on a very attractive and very large, not to mention very heavy, low arrangement in a beautiful square mirrored vase. The flowers were mostly in muted shades of pink, with a bit of purple for contrast. I am personally not a huge fan of pink, but I thought it was very pretty. More importantly, I was fairly certain that my in-laws on the receiving end of the gift, did in fact favor pink.
Did I mention that it was also very expensive? I guess I have good taste! I uncharacteristically bargained down the price close to 100 shekel, including free delivery. I then paid the salesgirl all the cash I had and put the remainder on my credit card. I was still feeling quite ambivalent about my purchase as I belatedly set off to do my own Shabbos shopping before having to rush home to leave for the restaurant.
As I stepped out of the store, I was shocked to see a mirage directly in front of me: a lovely niece and nephew with their teenage son! This young couple lives in the United States, and I had absolutely no idea that they were in Israel to visit their son, who is learning in yeshiva here.
We greeted each other warmly and exchanged some pleasantries; then the proverbial light bulb lit up in my head.
“Please do me a favor,” I beseeched them, pointing to the floral shop directly behind me. I quickly explained the situation, and asked them to accompany me back into the store and help me decide which arrangement our in-laws would prefer.
As a single, this niece had spent two years living with them in their home, and she certainly knew their taste and preferences far better than I did. They happily agreed to my request, accompanied me back into the store and up the stairs, and surveyed the selection of floral arrangements.
Lo and behold, both my niece and nephew decided on an arrangement that I had rejected just a few minutes earlier! And although it was not particularly my taste, I was so beyond grateful that they both agreed that the style, the colors, the flowers, basically everything about it, would be to our mutual in-laws’ liking.
I hugged my niece, relayed my heartfelt appreciation to all of them, and wished them a good Shabbos. Then I muttered a silent prayer to HaKadosh Baruch Hu, thanking Him sincerely for the incredible hashgacha pratis that this young couple had miraculously appeared precisely at the moment I needed them!
I then proceeded to totally switch my order with the salesgirl, who was remarkably patient and understanding. In the process, I saved a few hundred shekel, and because this arrangement was so much lighter and more portable, I even offered to deliver it myself.
So my next happy errand was to hand-deliver the lovely floral arrangement to my in-laws, who exclaimed over its beauty and heaped copious blessings upon me.
After that, I very belatedly commenced my erev Shabbos errands, arriving home just in time to set off to the restaurant and enjoy a truly memorable evening with my wonderful husband and children, savoring a delicious dinner, and basking in priceless nachas.
