Do You Hear the Helicopter?

By Y.Y. Hodakov

This past Shabbos afternoon, Rosh Chodesh Nissan, two sixteen year old girls on a Shabbaton with their high school at a Florida resort went missing. Even when they were finally spotted late Sunday morning, it took rescue teams a couple of hours to cut through the thicket to reach them and bring them to safety.

The fact that these girls were found, so soon, virtually unharmed, is a miracle.

One need only think of the unthinkable fears that went through people’s minds when they first heard the news, imagine what other possible mishaps the girls might have experienced in the woods, or talk to people familiar with the real dangers of the terrain, to appreciate how thankful and joyful we must be.

What kept them going through their ordeal?

According to reports, the girls were constantly hopeful, because they trusted that they were being looked for, especially when they heard the sound of the helicopter flying above them.

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Sometimes we feel like we are facing darkness in life’s forest, feeling threatened by its challenges. We hold out by knowing that we are being looked out for. In every situation, He is up there, keeping an eye on us.

But sometimes, we may wonder. We look up to the heavens and ask G-d for a sign. Please, we pray, let me know that You’re there for me, let me know that You’re here, with me. Can’t You give me a sign?

That’s the function of miracles.

Every once in a while, G-d shows his hand. Something extraordinary occurs, that reminds us that He’s there, and that He’s been there all along.

Just as the sound of the helicopter encouraged the girls in the forest, their miraculous rescue can serve as the “sound” that encourages us. “Stay put”, he says “I’m coming to you!”

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Shabbat Shalom.

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