yellow scorpion

barukh missed the bus
to work
after voting
the morning of elections
tuesday last week
 
there was no school that day
that’s why the bus
serving arava kibbutzim 
and eilat
reached be’er ora
before
than its regular time
at 8.45
 
as barukh didn’t know about
changes in the timetable
he got to the bus stop
at the regular time
of 8.55
 
so he missed the bus
that was supposed to take him to work
 
the next bus was to arrive 
two hours later
so there was no point
waiting for it
 
so barukh walked
on the short blacktop that connects
be’er ora to route 90
on foot
trying to hitch a ride
 
he just walked a minute
when a car stopped
 
at the elections
just an hour before
barukh 
voted 
for a political party
that campaigned for
peace among israeli citizens
 
barukh had not known at the time
simply had a feeling
deep in his soul
that he did not vote
for the winner
so 
a car stopped next to barukh
the window rolled down
and the woman driving the car
asked barukh 
where he was headed
 
he said
to eilat
 
the woman sweetly said 
she was also headed to eilat
so barukh can get in
she would give him a ride
 
the car has not left be’er ora
when it already turned out
that the woman
was the mother of habib
one of lelush’s classmates
 
on habib
a yellow scorpion fell
the one with deadly poison
at the end of february
 
there are two or three arab families
living in be’er ora
habib’s family is one of them
 
barukh asked habib’s mother 
to tell the story with the scorpion
 
habib’s mother
reliving the day
spoke animatedly 
with quick hebrew
 
barukh did not understand
the medical details
but did understand the story
 
habib was about to take their dog 
for a walk
when a yellow scorpion with deadly poison
fell on him
from the roof
and stung him
 
that day
only habib’s mother was at home
his father had 
something to do on the north
 
habib’s mother
called someone in be’er ora
barukh didn’t really get it
who it was
but the point is
in a matter of minutes
their house filled with 
people intent to help
 
arabs
jews
israelis
 
somebody 
offered their car
to habib and his mother
somebody
took care of habib’s siblings
while habib and his mother 
went to the hospital
somebody 
cooked
somebody
hung the clothes to dry
that had been in the wash before
 
habib 
spent eight hours
in the intensive care unit
of yoseftal hospital in eilat
 
he received blood transfusion 
and antidote
 
and after eight hours’
intensive care
he was let go home
 
habib has healed
completely since then
barukh has seen him around on his bike
several times
 
in be’er ora every parent
jew
arab
every israeli parent knew
that any one of their kids could have been 
in habib’s place
 
that it could have happened 
to any one of us
 
that to the yellow scorpion
it is all the same
who is jew
who is arab
 
on tuesday last week
the majority of israelis
still voted for parties
that try 
to sow animosity
between israeli parents
 
between israeli kids
 
between jews 
and arabs
 
between people religious
and secular
 
between right-wing
and left-wing
 
and barukh still does not
feel hopeless
 
he feels 
that until we have 
deadly scorpions 
that fall 
from rooftops 
on us
we israelis
still
find it more important
 
if not in politics
but in every day life
 
to live together
 
to survive together
 
to exist together