I know very little about her; even her
own son is not sure if she was born on August 29, 1926, or August 26,
1929. Judging by his age and that of his brother, I believe she was born
in 1926.
I am a writer and a student of human
nature. I care to learn about people; where they come from, what they
think about, and what they do. Matt, on the other hand, is an accountant
who deals with numbers and he is an accomplished artist. He paints
beautiful pictures, yet he doesn’t have the same desire to learn about
people as I do.
To me it is very strange that a son
would not know the birthday of his mother. For him things like birthdays
are not that important. He tells me his mom does not celebrate
birthdays. However there was a time that she did celebrate one very
special birthday.
I cannot imagine what it was like for a
Jewish girl growing up in Iraq, a Muslim country. All I know is that
when Hannah was 14, her family hired an Arabic language teacher for her
to study under. They felt learning Arabic, the official language of the
country would serve her well; and so it did. Years later, she married
that Muslim man and had two boys; Matt and his older brother Munir.
The family was considerably wealthy.
Matt’s father was a well respected lawyer and a pillar in his community.
The boys had the best that life could offer and they were very much
loved.
Much to his chagrin, the father also
knew that one day his sons would grow to be men and would have to serve
in the Iraqi army. Being a peace loving, god fearing man, he did not
want that for his boys. Therefore a plan was set in place so that the
boys would each study in England and get away from Iraq for good.
Since Munir was four years older than
his brother, he left for England when Matt was still a young child. Matt
continued to prosper at home. He was his father’s pride and joy. At six
years old he played chess and held intelligent conversations with his
father’s friends. His intellect surpassed his tender years. By the time
he had finished elementary school, Matt further proved his superior
intelligence by placing first in the Iraqi school system. He also had
plans for studying in England and becoming a doctor, like his older
brother.
When Matt reached England he attended
one of the best schools in the country for foreign students. He worked
and studied very hard to achieve his dream. He had such big plans that
were well within his reach until the day his entire world was changed
forever…
At fifteen, when his illustrious future
should have been waiting in front of him, his life almost came to an
end. He was hit by a car and left for dead in the middle of an English
highway. The driver sped by without a second thought.
Hannah and her husband flew in from Iraq
to be with their son. The doctors said the prognosis was bad. They
didn’t expect Matt to live.
As any mother will tell you, doctor’s
prognosis or not, a mother never gives up on her son and will try any
means in which to keep him with her. Hannah was no exception. Here she
was a mother of two boys living in a different country and one of them,
her youngest, her baby, was about to die. She just couldn’t wrap her
mind around that terrible thought. It just couldn’t happen.
The family visited their son everyday
while he was in the hospital and in a state of a coma. The English
nurses were very compassionate with Hannah.
Hannah was a grieving mother, in a
strange new land. There was so much that Hannah did not know or
understand about the West and England in particular. She could not even
speak English. But one thing she did comprehend was that it was
December, Christmastime for people in the West.
The hospital was decorated for the
Christmas season and everyone was in a festive mood. While here she was,
a Jewish woman married to a Muslim man with a dying child in a Christian
hospital. Sometimes, life can be ironic like that.
Instead of cursing this strange new land
for putting her son in such a terrible situation, Hannah embraced the
customs of the country. She prayed to the god of the Christians, whom
she had known to be a simple Rabbi all her life. She prayed to Jesus and
begged that if he spared her son’s life she would celebrate Christmas
from that point forward.
Matt survived the accident. He came out
of a coma nine months later, but his struggle was not over. The doctors
once again said that the prognosis was dismal. He was not expected ever
to walk again. The muscles and tendons in his legs were crushed beyond
repair. But the family did not give up. Matt did not give up.
Hannah did not lose her newfound faith
in Jesus and remained steadfast in her prayers to Jesus for the
continued health of her son.
After two years of intense physical
therapy and six major operations, Matt walks with a limp, and uses a
cane, but the miracle is; he walks!
How did the family turn out? Matt and
his parents migrated to Canada. Then years later, Matt’s father returned
to Iraq to die in his homeland.
Munir is a very prominent doctor and
renown professor in the United States. He is married to a Christian
woman, also a doctor, and has two children.
Matt is divorced from his first wife, a
Jewish woman and has two grown children. He is now my fianc? and lives
here in Montreal. After all those operations and time spent in the
hospital (over 2 years) he lost his desire to become a doctor. He chose
to be an accountant and painter instead.
Hannah has been a widow for over 15
years. She celebrates both Chanukah and Christmas. She lives with Matt.
To her dying day, she will never forget the miracle she received that
Christmas back in 1963. One day she will meet the great Rabbi in the sky
who gave her back her beloved son.
Copyright © 2006 Carol Roach.
_
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
A
Native of Montreal, Quebec,
Carol
Roach
is a graduate of Concordia and McGill University. She holds a Bachelor
in psychology and a Masters in counselling psychology. She is a
published author and newsletter editor. You can purchase her book:
Picking up the Pieces: A Woman's Journey at
http://www.amazon.com/rosancataandth-20,
or
www.publishamerica.com.
You can
also go to your local bookstore and order it there as well. Carol’s
second book: Angels Watching Over Me is currently looking
for a home. Stay tuned for details…If you are interested in other
stories feel free to join her newsletter: Storytime Tapestry at:
http://subs.zinester.com/98907
, or email her directly at
winterose@videotron.ca
and she will gladly accommodate you. Carol enjoys email and responds to
every inquiry.
