Tiyul Around Yerushalayim – With My Second Grader Son.

(or, You’ll never guess what I found at HaRav Avraham Shapira’s home)

Once again, my kids’ school requested the presence of my M16 and MDA emergency equipment for a class trip (it saves them money by having a qualified parent come along than paying a company to send medics). Plus, my son was very excited that his dad would accompany his second grade class trip.

Our first stop was the famous yeshiva of Merkaz HaRav, where we were going to meet the former Chief Rabbi of Israel, HaRav Avraham Shapira. Since my son’s school is learning about all the Chief Rabbis, the school thought it would be very “hands-on educational” if the kids could actually meet a current or previous Chief Rabbi, in person.

Since HaRav Shapira wasn’t at the yeshiva, we walked to his home down the block and 60 kids crammed into his apartment in Kiryat Moshe to meet him.

Rav Shapira is 93 years old - yet he's extremely animated and lucid to the point that he and the kids communicated exceptionally well.

The second graders asked all sorts of interesting questions:

When is Mashiach going to come?

Why are their 7 boys in my family, and no girls?

If a family is very poor, and a bit of milk falls into a pot of chicken, does the whole pot have to be thrown out?

Why is the “Ezrat Nashim” (women’s section) of the Beit HaMikdash called the “Ezrat Nashim” if men are also allowed in (but not in a regular shul).

Did you ever meet Rav Kook? What was he like?

Can you give us a bracha?

While they were having this very lively discussion, I snooped around a bit, checking out the seemingly endless sefarim pouring out around the walls.

There were lots and lots of book from Rav Kook. No surprises there.

Hmmm, didn’t find “The Making of a Godol”…and I was disappointed there weren’t any Slifkin books (well, none visable). The closest I found to a Slifkin book was “Tosafot Chachmei Angliya”.

And then…I spotted the one sefer I didn’t expect to see -

The Artscroll Shottenstein Hebrew Gemrara Edition for Masechet Pesachim

Wow!

I don’t feel so bad for using an Artscroll gemara anymore -- if I could find one in Rav Shapira’s house! (And this will probably makes Artscroll’s day, since I didn’t find any Steinzaltz editions there either)

I took a picture of my son with HaRav Shapira…and we continued on to the next part of the tiyul: The Hass Promenade overlooking the Old City of Yerushalayim, followed by “the City of David” – the old city of Jerusalem built by King David (today it's outside the walls of the Old City, and is also known as “Silwan” – a mixed neighborhood of Arabs and Jews). Finished off the tiyul with mincha at the Kotel.

There are plenty of sites around the internet with the history of this neighborhood -- if you want more info, please let me know.. We had a great time, and thank God, I didn’t need to use any of the MDA equipment…or my M16.

I’m exhausted so I’m off to bed.

Seminonymously yours,

Jameel

Wherever I am, my blog turns towards Eretz Yisrael