"There's the door, young man."
"But, but Rebbe Katz, I didn't mean to..." replied Shimon.
"Enough's enough. You've interrupted this lesson one time too
many. You've had sufficient warning. Now leave. Wait in the
hallway till further notice."
Shimon exits, head hung low, cheeks aflame.
Out in the hallway, Shimon sits down on the floor, bemoaning
his fate. With a desperate spark of energy, he finds some
paper lying nearby, and begins to crumple it tightly in his
fist. In a playful but defiant gesture, he throws it at the
classroom door, just as Rebbe Katz opens it. The paper ball
hits him squarely in the face.
"That's it! Off to the menahel you go!" rages R'
Katz.
Shimon very slowly heads towards the menahel's office,
shrugging and muttering under his breath, "Oh, now I'm really
in for it." He approaches the menahel's door and
knocks softly.
"Come in," the menahel calls out. "Oh, hello, Shimon.
And what brings you here today?"
Shimon quietly replies, "Rebbe Katz sent me."
"Again, Shimon? This is the fourth time this week Rebbe Katz
has sent you here. And it's only Tuesday! You must learn how
to behave in the classroom, or else you can no longer be part
of this framework. In the meantime, I'm sending you home now.
Tomorrow, I want you to return with a paper stating the
things you did wrong this week. I want you to write that you
won't do them again, and I want you and both your parents to
sign that paper. Don't bother coming back here without
it."
"Yes, sir, but..." Shimon replies.
"No buts, just go, already, and don't forget that paper!"
snaps the menahel, thinking to himself, Such
insurgent kids they have today!
Shimon, defeated, meanders home. He knocks on the door.
Naturally, no one answers. No one is usually home at 11 a.m.
His mother teaches in the mornings, and generally arrives
home around 1:15. His father had left several days earlier on
a short business trip abroad to collect money for the kollel.
He is not expected back till tomorrow night. Unbeknown to
Shimon, his mother has actually also flown abroad that very
morning, on last-minute notice that her mother fell deathly
ill. She had tried to reach his school, but the line had been
busy. So, in her haste, she had left a note by a
neighbor.
Shimon knocks and knocks till his knuckles turn white and
sore. He slumps down on the top step, head in his hands.
After a few minutes, he tries to knock by the next door
neighbor. No answer. He goes downstairs and tries a few more
doors. Finally, one neighbor opens her door. Luckily, it is
the one by whom his mother left the note.
"Shimon, what are you doing here at this hour?" Mrs. Cohen
blurts out. Without giving him a chance to reply, she
continues, "Come on inside and have a drink. I have a note
for you from your mother. I also have the key to your
house."
Shimon enters, sits down at the kitchen table, makes a hasty
brocho and quickly gulps down the cup of water. He
reads the note carefully.
Dear Shimon,
I'm sorry I didn't get a chance to tell you in person, but I
had to leave suddenly since Bubby in America became very
sick. I left this morning to be with her. I'm not sure when
I'll be coming back, so in the meantime, a babysitter is
scheduled to come every day at 1 p.m. to give everyone lunch,
and will stay till 8, until Abba comes home. Since he won't
be back till tomorrow night, tonight you will be sleeping by
your Aunt Chaya. Pack up a nice pair of pajamas and set of
clothes for tomorrow and walk over to her house at 8. Make
sure you have everything you need for school with you. The
babysitter will take your brothers and sisters to the places
where I have arranged for them to stay. I hope to return as
soon as possible.
Love, Ima
Shimon is floored. With a sorrowful expression, he takes the
key and heads home, up the stairs. He turns the key in the
lock and opens the door to find the house in disarray.
Spiritlessly, he begins to pack his things to take to his
aunt's. He thinks to himself, There's no way the
menahel will let me back in school tomorrow. No note,
no parental signature, no entry. No chance to explain. Door
shut in my face. Who cares? I really don't want to be there,
anyway.
Evening finally comes and Shimon trudges over to his aunt's
house.
Aunt Chaya opens the door with a big smile for her favorite
nephew. "Come on in, Shimon. I made chocolate chip cookies
just for you. Come, put your stuff down over here. You'll
have time to unpack a little later."
"Thanks, Aunt Chaya," says Shimon, cracking a weak smile.
"Boy, do you look down!" says Aunt Chaya, trying to lighten
Shimon's mood. "I know how tough it must be for you, with
both Ima and Abba away, and with your Bubby so ill."
"Yes," Shimon quietly replies, looking down.
"Hmmm, don't worry. In the morning things will be better
im yirtze Hashem. Try to get some sleep now so you'll
be rested for school," advises Aunt Chaya.
Shimon looks down at the floor, a tear rolling down his
cheek. In a small voice, he says, "Nah, what do I need to be
rested for? There's no school for me." And he begins to
sob.
"Would you like to tell me what happened? Perhaps I can help.
My sons attended your cheder, too, you know," says
Aunt Chaya.
"Not really," mumbles Shimon, but then, in a broken voice, he
describes his hapless day. "And the worst part is that
without a note from my parents, the menahel won't let
me back in tomorrow. And they can't even give me one, being
so far away now." Shimon begins to sob uncontrollably. "How
can I face the menahel tomorrow?"
"I'll take care of this, Shimon. I'll try to reach the
menahel at his home tonight. I know him very well. We
have had lots of um... chats through the years. After all,
five of my boys already graduated from there and Yossi is in
the third grade there now. I'll explain the situation to him.
From my experiences, he really does try to treat the boys
fairly, while not losing his cool. Sometimes, though, he has
no choice. You don't have to worry about anything. Now go to
bed and try to sleep off your troubles. You'll see, tomorrow
will be brighter," she reassures him.
Aunt Chaya calls the menahel and explains Shimon's
predicament. He listens and makes a mental note to remember
in the future to first make sure that parents are home before
sending a student home early. Poor kid! he thinks to
himself, apprising the harm caused to Shimon by his own hasty
reaction and early dismissal. "Thank you for letting me know,
Mrs. Stein. Please send Shimon tomorrow and everything will
be O.K."
The menahel proceeds to phone Shimon's rebbe and
explains how to best handle the boy in the morning. "When
Shimon comes to class tomorrow, please change his seat to one
up front, right near you. I'm sure you will see a marked
improvement in his attention and behavior. Perhaps the boy
seated next to him was bothering him, or perhaps he just
needed some extra attention, being that his father is abroad.
In general, try to keep in mind that while some offenses are
inexcusable and do warrant punishment at his age, many acts
of misbehavior can and sometimes should be ignored. As for
what he threw at you -- I'm sure he didn't expect you to come
out the door right at that moment!"
Rebbe Katz conceded this, with a smile, and agreed to
reconsider the whole picture of Shimon and his situation.
Shimon returns to school the next day and instead of dread,
for once, he really enjoys Rebbe Katz's shiur and
actively participates in the class discussion. And this
becomes a turning point in his attitude and performance.
Who knows how many doors should not have been shut, or
should have been reopened with proper insight and
understanding...
