Appreciating what you have

I recently spoke to a friend about my writing, and said that I had run out of things to write about. She said just write about things that happen to you. At the time, I thought nothing interesting happens in my boring life. Of course the next day something did happen ....

On a Friday morning, I took a call from a heavily accented Russian lady. Can I come for shabbos she said. It was a contact my husband had made from an email list he subscribes to. I was kind of perplexed, normally we discuss these things first. But something in her voice sounded desperate. So I said OK, as long as you don't mind sleeping in the same room as the kids. Fine she said....Well, I thought she wouldn't turn up like many others we have asked.

One hour before Shabbos, a large middle-aged lady rings our bell. The first thing she says is you have saved me from Arabs. A rather shocking statement....It turns out that the lady is homeless, and is currently living in an Arab hostel. Being Jewish she didn't want to spend a Shabbos in the company of Arabs. Apparently there are no cheap Jewish-owned hostels in Jerusalem.

She was so appreciative of being with Jews, a family, hot food and her own room (my son gave his room up). She had virtually noone to turn to - no husband, kids or family. After she left, I realized how ungrateful we all are for what we have in our lives. We have a beautiful home, but I often feel depressed about not getting out. We have 5 kids, but they frequently drive us 'meshugah'. How lucky we are.....