What Are Your "Payos"?

 The purpose of this blog is to wakesurf Yom Kippur... Please share... 

In the middle of Yom Kippur, we took a break to say Yizkor.

As usual, I did my Yizkor at the nearby assisted living place. (We call the program "Love Your Neighbor"; it's running at several residences with dozens of volunteers.)

This is a motley group of widows and widowers, none of whom can walk unassisted.

Most have no family nearby. 

A few of them can hold a normal conversation.

I like to think that even those who cannot hold a normal conversation nonetheless are aware and appreciate that I'm there.

So I like start Yizkor with a story.

For some reason, the story that came to mind this week was that of a nine-year-old boy in Bnai Braq who was told by his doctor and parents that he was probably going to die. 

They said that they would try to save him by giving him chemotherapy, but that it is likely that all of his hair would fall out.

Upon hearing this information, the boy got teary and left the room. His parents heard him from the other room saying,

"Lord, I accept the decree that you've given me that I must get this treatment and that I might die. But please, please, please don't take away my payos, the sign that I'm a Jew!"

Needless to say, his tears moved everyone else to tears.

He underwent the treatment. 

And he lost all of his hair.

Except for his payos.

There was no medical explanation for this.

Rabbi Nachman of Breslaw said that we should learn three things from children: they're always busy, they're always happy, and they never tire of saying "Please, please, please Daddy!" until they get what they want.

Question for your table - if you had to give up everything Jewish but could save just one thing - an object, or payos, or a custom - what would you save? What are your "payos"?


Shabbat Shalom

and 

Chag Sameach


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