My Daddy is in Heaven

My Daddy is in Heaven

August 4, 1999

A little while ago I was sitting in a small hospital room together with

Baruch and Miriam ben Ya'akov and Ephraim and Anna Rosenstein. Baruch and

Ephraim were on their way into Hebron from Kiryat Arba last night when they

were shot at by Arab terrorists who ambushed them. Making their way down

the hilly, curvy road into the city, they made a right turn, only meters

from the Tomb of the Patriarchs - Ma'arat HaMachpela. As they turned, an

Arab terrorist armed with an M-16 rifle opened fire. Over a period of a few

seconds, seconds which sounded like an eternity, some 24 bullets were

discharged, in their direction, from almost point-blank range. Two

terrorists, hiding in a small gully on the side of the road, concluded

shooting and fled in the direction of the Arafat controlled section of

Hebron.

The car, driven by Baruch, stopped at the side of the road. Ephraim jumped

out, took cover behind the car, drew his gun and attempted to load it.

However he was unable to because two of his fingers had been ripped off by

the gunfire. He jumped back into the car and the two men continued a few

more meters, arriving at an army checkpoint in front of Ma'arat HaMachpela.

They were sped by jeep to a military base where they received first aid.

>>From there they were taken by ambulance to Hadassah hospital in Jerusalem.

Ephraim lost part of two fingers on his right hand and was splattered by

shrapnel in his eyes, hands and forehead. Baruch's wounds were lesser. He

has shrapnel in his left shoulder.

I found the two men, together with their wives, in high spirits. Ephraim

answered phone calls from friends, calming them down, explaining to them

that he really is OK. He will probably he released from the hospital by the

end of this week or early next week, as will Baruch. Both couples,

realizing the tremendous miracle that had occurred, were almost joyous.

Twenty four bullets from an M-16 at point-blank range are not easy to

survive. Not only did they both survive, but their wounds can be described

as relatively mild, considering the alternatives.

Both of these men are no strangers to adversity. Ephraim Rosenstein came to

Israel from Russia. There he was chased around the country by people

attempting to kill him due to his Israel-Zionist activities. Anna

Rosenstein's father too was a major figure in the struggle against Soviet

oppression of Jews and Israel activists. Ephraim finally escaped, arrived

in the United States, and moved to Israel. A few years ago the couple

moved from their apartment in Kiryat Arba to a small 'caravan' home in the

Tel Hebron (Rumeida) neighborhood, in Hebron.

Baruch ben Ya'akov came to Israel from the United States many years ago. He

married a Russian woman and has lived both in Hebron and Kiryat Arba. About

six years ago, walking down the street in Hebron on a Friday morning, he

was stabbed in the neck. Fortunately the wound was superficial, and

required only a few stitches. He has a radiant personality, always

grinning, singing, and happy. Tonight he was no different.

Earlier this afternoon I visited one of Hebron's nursery schools. As I

arrived I found a group of happy little children scampering around on the

lawn. The woman watching them smiled at me and said hello. Every time I see

her at the nursery school I cannot help but think back to a cold January

morning, less than a year ago. Flori Hofi, together another nursery school

teacher, was shot by Arab terrorists at almost the exact spot where the

attack took place last night. Flori's wounds weren't critical. A bullet

entered one leg and exited from the other leg. She was back at the nursery

school after a few months. Today she was at work, as usual.

As I was standing there, suddenly one of the children caught my eye. A

little blond boy in a red shirt, pranced around with the others - one of

Ephraim and Anna Rosenstein's children, Elchanan.

Two people, a small boy and a middle-aged woman, with something very unique

in common. Elchanan's father was almost killed last night at the very site

where his nursery school teacher was almost murdered just seven months ago.

At the hospital the two men gave accounts of the attack and we spoke about

their medical condition. I told them that I had been talking to a friend in

the Avraham Avinu neighborhood when the shots were fired. Hearing the long

burst of automatic fire, we both waited a minute for the sound of sirens, a

sure confirmation that 'something had happened.' When there were no sirens,

we went our separate ways. As I arrived home a couple of minutes later, all

hell broke loose. Jeeps speeding by, soldiers running every which way, and

walkie-talkies squawking endlessly.

I also recounted to Ephraim and Anna that I had met their little son

Elchanan earlier in the day, at his nursery school. Anna Rosenstein looked

at me and said, "You know, this morning Elchanan went to nursery school and

told all his friends that his Daddy is now in heaven."

Tonight I printed out some pictures of Ephraim that I photographed at his

hospital bedside in an attempt to convince little Elchanan that his father

is not in heaven, but is alive and recovering. Elchanan was already asleep

when I arrived at his house. But the babysitter assured me that Ephraim

had spoken to Elchanan earlier on the phone, thereby relieving the little

boy's anxieties about his father's death. I left the pictures for him to

see in the morning, hoping that they will quell any lingering doubts he

may still have. A picture of Mommy and Daddy together, ever if Daddy is

missing a couple of fingers, should do the trick until Daddy comes home in

a couple of days.

With that, we have no choice but to remember, and remember we will, that

Elchanan's daddy really was very very close to heaven last night.