Against the backdrop of the extreme heatwave, Rabbi Shai Nave described in a Facebook post he published yesterday (Wednesday) a small but significant encounter with a security guard at the Ramat Aviv Mall, who had been standing for hours in the heat. A moment of compassion — and ten seconds in his car’s air conditioning — reminded him how easily roles can be reversed.
“Read this before you head out to work,” Nave wrote at the start of his post, recalling: “My heart went out to the security guard at the entrance to the Ramat Aviv Mall. He had a cooler and water, but outside it was like a turbo oven.”
“I asked him what would help him, and he asked for ten seconds in the car’s air conditioning — just to rest his head in the cool air. I have this thing… I feel like it could easily have been the other way around — him sitting in the air-conditioned Toyota and me standing in the heat, evaporating. That gets to me,” Nave said.
At the end of the post, Nave called on people to open their eyes and help those in need: “Today, in the insane heat outside, pay attention to those standing on the roads. Throw a couple of six-packs of small water bottles into your car and give them to a group of youngsters heading up to the Kinneret — crazy kids. Give to the soldiers. Pick up hitchhikers, even if you normally wouldn’t. And you know what — also put out a bowl of water outside for cats and birds.”
