It’s the third day of Chanukah. Outside, it is very cold, but sunny. I am sitting inside, in my daughter’s warm and cozy caravan in K’far Eldad in Gush Etzion.
I have just finished saying Hallel, and it has so much extra meaning to me this year. There is so much to be thankful for.
My newest grandchildren, triplet boys born shortly before Sukkot, are now B”H almost three months old. This Chanukah marks another chag in their lives. Hashem has granted us three healthy, noisy little boys. He has been supporting our family through my daughter’s pregnancy to the birth of her little boys. He has continued helping us bring the triplets to this point. They are starting to smile, lift their heads and make eye contact. They are B”H growing and thriving.
I sit here thinking of how much gratitude we owe Hashem for all this plenty. I am also thinking of all the people we have encountered, some of whom were complete strangers, who had taken our triplets into their hearts. They, too, must be thanked.
Many are the people who had added my daughter Meira’s name to their teffilot, praying for a happy ending to her long, not always easy pregnancy. There are other people I would like to add to the list who have demonstrated joy in our joy.
The third of the babies was brought home from the pagiah (NICU) unit to join his brothers. We settled everyone down in my house in Yerushalayim. Then, we began a regimen of coaxing the sleeping preemies to finish every drop in their bottles. This went on day and night, with few of us getting any sleep.
It was erev Sukkot, and there was a knock at the door. A lady I had never met before was carrying three cakes she had made for the chag in honor of the three little ones. She lived in our neighborhood and heard about our bonanza. Now, here she stood, bearing her gifts and berachot. She wanted to be part of the miracle of our triplets.
Two local families who have extra space in their houses, each offered an apartment to the young couple to live in while here. People brought over bags of clothing, both new and used. A co-worker of my daughter in law handed over an envelope for the young couple, to help them defray the costs of caring for the babies.
After a while, my daughter, her husband, their little daughter still in diapers and the triplets, moved back home to their caravan in K’far Eldad , Gush Etzion. A friend with a large vehicle and a larger heart came over to my house and helped us transport everything they needed back to their caravan. I temporarily moved along with them, and am still here, helping them manage.
There are people who come over to help us give the babies a bath. We have all learned to do this in assembly line fashion. We could not do it all alone.
There is a 13-year-old girl who comes over to help me feed and care for the babies around five pm. We give my daughter this free time to spend with her 2-year-old, who is finding it difficult to get used to the changes in her family.
There is a young woman of seventeen who tremps (gets lifts) from her home so she could take care of the triplets through the night once a week. She travels an average of one and a half hours each way. After being up all night with the little ones, she turns around and begins the journey back, trying to get to her school on time.
The mohel, a young man, was very excited to have the honor of performing the britot for the triplets. He did not want to accept any payment, but finally agreed on accepting a much-reduced sum. At the end of the very beautiful britot, the mohel asked if there were any kohanim present. One of son in laws stood up with his three young sons. They stood before the babies and blessed them. There was not a dry eye in the crowd.
We truly have many good things surrounding us. Good things do come in threes.
