A few weeks ago, I decided to take a cruise down main street in the auld Beetle. I journeyed down main street giving people the peace sign in reply to their thumbs up. I parked at the end of South Main and made my way up the road towards bricked area of city centre. I spotted a man sitting on a bench that looked like he could use some company, so I enquired, “Pardon me, sir, would you mind if I sit for a spell?”
He nodded and I sat down beside him and bathed in the spring sunbeams. The man looked a little out of place amongst the myriad of striplings ambling up and down the pavement. He was a white headed bearded chap wearing dress slacks, a tweed sport coat, and gleaming Sunday shoes. There was a silver Star of David glistening on his left lapel.
The gentleman turned as if to enquire about something. “Was that you in that old Beetle that came past here a few minutes ago?”
“Yes, sir.” I answered with great delight, hoping to start a conversation.
“I had one back in the 50’s, when I lived in England”, he stated with an overwhelming smile.
“Was it a split window, Beetle?” I asked with excitement.
“Yes, it was a split window, Beetle. You must know your VW’s.”
“I’m surprised, sir, if you don’t mind me saying so. I didn’t figure that many Jewish people would have anything to do with a car made in Germany, at least back then.”
“Well, they were very economical at the time, and besides, we invented the things”, he answered with a mild smirk overtaking his countenance.
I smiled and said, They are still economical and very good cars, at least the older one’s are”.
I hesitated for a moment pondering whether to ask the question that I really wanted to ask. He was elderly and theoretically could have survived the holocaust.
“Sir, if you don’t mind me asking…”
“I know the question you are going to ask and the answer is, yes.”
“Were you in Germany at the time?”
He stroked his beard for a bit, and said, “I was 8 years-old, when my father lost his job at Heidelberg University. Well, he was kicked out by the Nazi’s. It was 1939 and Hitler and all of his cronies were mercilessly expelling Jews from Germany. My father had just enough money hidden away to move all of us to England. I lost a lot of friends and family during those horrific years. I think that everyone who really wants to know how insidious the Nazi’s were, should visit Aushwitz. It is one thing to read books or watch a documentary, but it is a whole other ball game to see it. How does the saying go? “”Those who don’t know history are destined to repeat it.”””
I almost put my hand up as if answering a question in class, and enunciated, “Edmund Burke is the original orator of that phrase, I think, but it has been rehashed so many times by so many people”.
“Ah right, an Irishman, I believe”, he said whilst stroking his beard and poking at some trash with his cane.
I scratched my head, and said, “I never have understood it, sir. I have a wee bit of German as well as Jewish blood running through my veins. I don’t guess…”
Laughingly, he enquired, “You, Jewish ancestors? I’d take you for being Irish or English.”
“I am mostly Irish, but my mothers, mothers, fathers, mothers, mothers, fathers, fathers, fathers, fathers, father came over from Israel a long time ago. His grandson, Michael Israel, started the first synagogue in North Carolina. He and his father, Solomon, fought in the Revolutionary War. Actually the Germans come in on the same side of the family. I am proud of all of my ancestors, for if it were not for them, I wouldn’t be here.”
The gentleman leaned back with arched frosty eyebrows and a smile. “You must be a historian, knowing all of that about your family?”
“No one in my family seems to care, so I have taken it upon myself to do the research and take the time needed to learn all that I can about all of my ancestors. Though, I do love history.”
“That’s very admirable of you, son. We need more people like you in the world”, he said whilst adjusting his hat.
“So, tell me more about yourself, sir”
With a great laugh, he responded, “That would take ages, and as you can see, I’m not getting any younger”.
“Where did you grow up in England?”
“We moved around a lot. My father worked in Reading and London. London was a great place to be in the 60’s, even for a Jew.”
“When did you move to the states?” I earnestly enquired.
“Well, I got a job with a great firm in New York, so we moved there in the early 70’s. My wife had family in Queens, so it wasn’t a hard choice. We moved to Upstate New York about 15 years ago to get away from the hustle and bustle of city life.”
“What brings you to the upstate of South Carolina, if you don’t mind me asking.”
“We came down for the wedding of a friends granddaughter, but we are also considering moving down here.”
“Ah, that’s grand.”
“Are you sure you’re not from the UK?” He asked with a mild grin.
“No, I just have some kind friends in Ireland and the UK. And, I’ve visited a few times.”
“Don’t let the world define you, you define the world.”
“Sir, if has been a pleasure meeting you, if you and your family need any assistance while in town, please give me a call”, I stated whilst giving him my card.
About that time, a crowd of ladies came out of the hotel that is situated directly in city centre. One of them was an elderly lady making her way towards us. He gathered up his belongings as the lady got closer.
“My name is Jefferson Davis, sir. You all have a safe trip”, I said.
The man turned back around, shook my hand, and said, “My name is Hiram, Hiram Israel.”
I stood there in shock with a half grin on my face as they walked towards the line of restaurants further up main street. It just proves that you never know who you are going to meet on the street. I could tell by the tone of his voice that he didn’t want to talk about the Holocaust, or Shoah. According to him, it’s been 72 years since he left Germany, but it still shakes him to the bone. I’m just a mere Gentile, but I will not ever forget what happened so many decades ago. There is no, nor will there ever be, any reason for killing so many people. The German people put their hopes and dreams in one man and one party. That was their ultimate downfall. Few people could predict in 1925 how power would turn Hitler and his cabinet into a bunch of malign despots.
That should be a lesson heeded by the young of today. Idolise no man. Aspire to accomplish what other men have accomplished, but never idolise another man for you will surely see him faulter and sink into an abyss of diffidence. Have faith in yourselves and God, if you so choose. Even Jesus says in John 10:34, “Ye are gods”.
Define the world, people. Make it a better place for us all to live in. Even the most finite ripples in a pond traverse its entire surface.
