Soaring to Safety
I owe my life to my good friend, the dayan and tzaddik, Rabbi Nissim Rebibo, zy”a. This is what happened:
A number of years ago, he invited me to a dinner in honor of his institutions, adding that my participation would help his cause tremendously. I was busy arranging a flight to Chicago at that time, in order to raise much-needed funds for my own institutions. I thought of declining his invitation. But on second thought, I agreed to accept and postponed my trip. I took part in Rabbi Rebibo’s dinner. Hearts and pockets were opened generously, and his Torah institutions received their due support.
- Newspaper report of the plane crash
Some time later, I was once again in the midst of frenetic preparations for a plane trip. This time, I was scheduled to fly from Geneva to New York, and then directly back to Geneva again. But Hashem’s timetable was different. He planted in me the desire to visit Chicago, as my intended trip to that city had been aborted. I therefore planned to take a detour from New York to Chicago and fly from there back to Geneva. I don’t know what possessed me to make this decision; it was far costlier than flying directly from New York to Geneva. It was clearly the hand of Hashem at work. His Divine intervention would save my life, as well as the life of my secretary, R’ Yehudah Chadad, who accompanied me on this trip.
In Chicago, a Chassidic Jew approached me. He related that he suffered from frequent bouts of forgetfulness, which disturbed his quality of life. He asked for my advice and blessing. I advised him to write the letter א' three times in full and to study the paper. The numerical equivalent of the letters which comprise the א' ((אלף, written out three times, is 333, the same as that of the word שכחה (forgetfulness). This is a tried and true segulah to boost the memory.
Another person approached me, complaining of the same symptoms. I offered him the advice that I had given the first man. After he left, I was lost in thought. Could it be that everyone in Chicago is forgetful? There must be some message for me here. Eventually, the mystery unfolded.
If I had any thoughts that I had done a good turn for Rabbi Rebibo by cancelling my original plans of flying to Chicago, I quickly discovered that it was he who had helped me. The flight I had contemplated taking from New York to Geneva ended up crashing, not leaving one survivor.
I realized that had I not attended the dinner in honor of Rabbi Rebibo’s yeshiva, but kept my plans of flying to Chicago, I would have flown directly from New York to Geneva on that ill-fated flight. I, too, would have met my end together with the other passengers.
- With the Dayan, HaGaon Rabbi Nissim Rebibo, zt”l
Suddenly, the incidents with forgetfulness clicked into place. The gematria of א', when spelled out, is 111, the number of that fateful flight which never reached its destination.
One who upholds a mitzvah is saved from harm.
