Mr and Mrs Abrams were preparing the living room for the reception of their son, who had been studying at yeshiva in Israel. They were aided by their other three children, Mordechai, Sarah, and Ruth. Decorations spelling ‘Welcome Home’ arched under the ceiling, and blue and white balloons occupied every corner. A meal had been prepared. The smell of potatoes and meat filled the room. Servings of boiled potatoes and meatloaf were placed on the dining table accompanied by several side dishes. Soon enough, the table was set and ready for the participants.
One by one, Eliezer Blume, Simon Gold, and Ariel Silver arrived. Mrs Abrams had invited her son’s friends to participate in the reception to maximise the joy of their son upon his return home. Mr Abrams kindly reminded them to put on a kippah. They would have to wear one whilst partaking in the meal, and there were plenty of extra kippot in the house (they had not brought one with them).
After donning kippot that Mr Abrams had provided them, the friends stood around; Simon’s eyes glanced at the meal, and Eliezer couldn’t be still amidst the delicious scents. After enough waiting, Mrs Abrams returned the meatloaf and boiled potatoes to the kitchen to keep warm.
Mr and Mrs Abrams wondered what was taking their son so long to return home. They called him, but he didn’t pick up the phone. Eliezer, Simon, and Ariel conversed in order to distract themselves from their worry regarding their friend’s delay. Mr and Mrs Abrams’s children did the same.
At around half past six, after flight delays and a taxi from Heathrow Airport to Golders Green, Isaac opened the front door and, carrying a stuffed backpack and carry-on, rolled his large suitcase through the vestibule. With the sight of the interior of his quiet home, which granted privacy from the outside world, he was overcome by emotion, both by the comfortable, familiar feeling of being home again and by yearning to remain in the land of Israel to be with his friends and classmates and to be learning. He felt a contraction in his chest, a tightness in his throat, and, amidst pulling all this weight, was on the verge of tears.
He entered the living room and was met with a flood of cheers from his family and close friends. He grinned upon seeing them, quickly forgetting whatever melancholic thoughts he had had. Mordechai, his older brother, threw his arms around him – indeed, no other person showed him as much affection as he did – and the other members of his family and friends also embraced him. Mordechai and Mr Abrams took his belongings to his bedroom as Mrs Abrams and her two daughters brought out the hot dishes, and they all sat down to eat what had been intended to be a late lunch but turned out to be a dinner.
Isaac’s family and friends bombarded him with questions about Israel and yeshiva. The Abrams had gone to Israel once several years ago and, apart from Ariel’s visit to see relatives there five years prior, that represented the totality of the diners’ experience travelling there.
After the meal, Isaac’s family left him to be with his friends on the sofa (they would have ample opportunity to enquire further about his experiences later), and he was overcome with joy to be reunited with the three of them again. He sat at the end of the sofa, which gave him a full view of his three friends’ faces.
‘How’s The Team doing?’ asked Isaac.
‘The Team’ was a name the four of them had given themselves as a group after having formed such a strong bond whilst attending secondary school during their time at yeshiva together.
‘Good,’ said Simon. ‘I actually had a good run this past summer. I didn’t tell you, but I got a pretty good role in a play, and the show ran for two months at the theatre.’
‘Wow,’ said Isaac, delighted to hear that his time at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art had been followed by such success. ‘So, I’m guessing you were able to do shows outside of Shabbat?’
‘No,’ said Simon, ‘I knew beforehand that it would be on Friday and Saturday nights, but… it was such a prominent position, and I really wanted it. I thought, I can’t just let this opportunity pass.’
Isaac only stared at his friend. He was able to maintain a smile on his face – how could he not? Apart from smiling out of politeness, he had not seen his friends for three years. He had visited home a handful of times during his studying in Israel, but Ariel had been away studying mathematics at Oxford, Simon had been consumed by his studying acting at the Academy, whilst Eliezer had been busy at work or on holiday somewhere. Inside, he was crumbling in deep sadness and despair. How could his good friend have been violating Shabbat? Had he comprehended the gravity of his intended actions? Eliezer was the next to speak, and Isaac eagerly welcomed this, hoping for relief.
‘I’ve been working at the fitness centre,’ said Eliezer, who worked as a personal trainer. ‘It’s been going great. I’ve been making a lot of progress with my team. We’ve been doing a lot of research on health and using it with our clients and promoting ourselves on social media. We’re really getting our name out there and we’re starting to experience a lot of success.’
‘OK, great,’ said Isaac, nodding. Though the others were quick to voice their support for him, something about Eliezer’s words and the way he related them to them made Isaac feel a little insecure. ‘Do you find time to study?’
‘Sure. We dedicate a lot of time doing research throughout the week.’
‘I was thinking more along the lines of Torah.’
Eliezer paused, looking a bit taken aback.
‘Oh. Er…, no, not really.’
Simon laughed. ‘When was the last time you’ve been to synagogue, even?’
Eliezer blushed.
Isaac saw that Ariel was blushing, too.
‘And you, Ari, how have you been?’ asked Isaac.
‘I’ve been great. I got accepted into the actuary sciences programme at the University of London.’
‘Mazel tov,’ said Isaac. This was the only response that seemed to merit this phrase out of all the mentions of personal achievements.
‘Thank you.’
‘Wow,’ said Simon, looking at Eliezer to his right and Ariel to his left. ‘It’s so great to see you guys again.’
‘You guys haven’t seen each other this whole time?’ asked Isaac.
Ariel shook his head.
‘I was at Oxford.’
‘Wow,’ said Eliezer, ‘The Team is back once again!’
Mr and Mrs Abrams started putting the dirty plates away.
Simon got up and asked, ‘Should we help you?’
‘No, we’ve got it,’ said Mrs Abrams. ‘Thank you, though.’
‘We should hang out sometime soon,’ said Isaac as the rest of them got up from the sofa. ‘Ari, you’ll be in London now, so it’ll be easier.’
‘Right,’ said Ariel.
‘Yes, we should!’ agreed Simon.
‘I’m on board,’ said Eliezer.
‘Great,’ said Isaac.
Eliezer, Simon, and Ariel returned the kippot to Mr Abrams and thanked him for letting them use them.
‘You’re very welcome,’ said Mr Abrams, who walked them out.
Isaac, watching in horror, trailed behind them as he witnessed his best friends walk without any head covering to the front door.
‘You’re welcome anytime,’ Mr Abrams assured them as they waved goodbye at him and Isaac.
Isaac waved back as his jaw hung.
They descended the front steps, and Mr Abrams closed the front door.
Isaac returned to the living room, taking it all in. His strength gave way, and he sat on the sofa, staring absent-mindedly ahead as Mr and Mrs Abrams returned the empty bottles and glasses to the kitchen. What on earth had happened to his friends? And what little he did know – Simon violating Shabbat; Eliezer not going to synagogue! How could they have allowed themselves to get to such a degraded state?
‘Isaac,’ called Mr Abrams, collecting a pair of wine glasses, ‘I know you’re probably tired from your travels, but could you help us out just a bit?’
‘Sure,’ said Isaac, jumping off the sofa to help his parents clean the dining table.
After clearing the table, Isaac said to his father, ‘Could I talk to you for a moment?’
‘Sure,’ said Mr Abrams.
They sat beside each other on the sofa.
‘What’s up?’
‘I can’t believe it. It seems like Eliezer, Simon, and Ari are becoming less observant. I fear that they’re no longer frum.’ Isaac was heartbroken as he uttered these words.
‘Right. I had never seen them without their kippot before. I had requested that they put one on prior to eating.’
A wave of silence swept across the room. Isaac stared absent-mindedly past his father. He sulked. He felt powerless.
‘How could they do this?’
Mr Abrams took in a deep breath, choosing carefully the right words with which to console his son.
‘I don’t know. It seems none of us do, but I would suggest that you not be so quick to judge. You simply don’t know what they’re going through – what circumstances, family pressures, personal struggles.’
‘But they’re going through so much success,’ argued Isaac, then correcting himself, ‘career success. Ari got into graduate school, I presume Eliezer’s making money, and Simon just did a play.’
‘Right, but,’ started Mr Abrams, ‘still…, you should give them the benefit of the doubt, until you know the full picture – or at least, you shouldn’t really judge others until you’re in their place.’
There was a bit more discussion related to this topic before Mr Abrams suggested that Isaac was stressed after his long trip home or from jetlag. Isaac only wished this were the case, but upon retiring to his dim bedroom, he could not think of anything else but his friends. What circumstances were they going through? He was curious.
