During World War 2 the Nazi soldiers were trying to take over one country after another in Europe.
My dear father in law, may he have a Refuah Shleimah, Mr Herszl Szmerling, grew up in Kalish, Poland , which is the city of the Ramoh.
During the war his father had a plan to run away from Poland and enter Russia. The family was forced to make the impossible decision whether to stay in Poland or try to flee. They decided to take their wives and children and run away but tragically had to leave the older generation back in Kalish...
Whilst they were trying to organize their escape they left my father in law and his brother in an orphanage run by Jan Korszak.
The Germans invaded Poland and it didn't take long before they forced Korzak and all of the children onto a train. This train was headed towards Auschwitz. My father in law was a young boy of seven but he realized that if he would reach the place where the train was headed there would be little chance for him to survive.
He decided to wait until the train turned a corner and then to jump out of the moving train .
He also decided to try to help save the life of a little Jewish girl who was also on this train. He told the girl of his plan and she was very scared to do it. But my father in law calmed her down and told her not to worry, and to try to roll on the ground...When they reached a turn in the train tracks he held her hand and they jumped out together. Thankfully, apart from a small bruise they were both fine and they managed to run back into Kalish together and go back to their families.
Now let's fast forward to the 1980s in New York.
My husband was a young man of about 20 years old visiting America for the first time.
There was a group of young men going out on one of the nights of Chanuka to spread the light of Chanuka to Jewish people all over NY.
My husband hopped onto one of many "Mitzvah tanks" and he was dropped off in one of the streets of Long Island. He went up the stairs leading to a magnificent home and knocked on the door.
A Jewish lady answered the door, and asked him why he was there.
He answered her
"My name is Mordechai Szmerling and I am visiting you on behalf of Chabad to wish you a Happy Chanukah."
"What is your name again? "
My husband repeated his name.
"Where are you from?"
My husband answered that he was from Melbourne, Australia.
"No, I mean where is your father from?"
"My father is from Poland."
"Where in Poland?"
" From the city of Kalish"
And what is your father's name?"
"Herszl or in Polish Henyak.".
When my husband said the word Kalish he noticed that the lady's face had turned completely white. Then she told him to wait just a moment. A few minutes later she came back and showed him a photograph of his father as a young boy.
"Do you realize that your father saved my life?" she said to my husband with a tear glistening in her eye.
Then she told over the story of the train and asked him all about the family.
Later on this lady made a special trip to Australia to meet my father in law, his brothers and all of the family.
Tuesday 17 November 2015
Hashgocha Protis As Told By Ruth Shmerling
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