It all began with a simple trip to the doctor with Miriam. A trip that any mother of young children has made hundreds of times. Miriam was the youngest, the baby. There was a virus going around and she wasn’t feeling well and so her mother wanted to check her out. Maybe it was the virus or perhaps strep or an ear infection. She might need antibiotic so off they went to the doctor’s office in the middle of a busy afternoon.
Miriam’s mother continues the story. Well, it wasn’t a virus or an infection or strep. The doctor’s answer was so unexpected, I nearly fainted. I had several older children and plenty of neighbors with kids. I knew the things that kids get sick with. The doctor’s diagnosis was not one of the normal kids’ sicknesses. I thought maybe I didn’t hear him correctly. Cancer? How could that be? That’s not normal!
But it was. My baby needed a bone marrow transplant and I found myself spending all my time at the hospital with her. That’s when I met Ezer Mizion. They took care of everything a Mommy normally does. They made sure that I had delicious meals every single day while I was in the hospital. And a beautiful package of things for supper arrived at my home for the rest of the family. The Shabbos meals they sent were amazing! A volunteer came into do laundry, another one to clean the house. A third came every day to do homework with the kids and play fun games with them. Sometimes the volunteers would take a child out for ice cream and just talk with them.
They arranged trips for the family. Just so we could enjoy ourselves together as a family. They took us, and other families like us, on a vacation in a hotel with fun games and lots of activities, they took us to Natanya beach where there was separate swimming, and to the Bibical Zoo. When Tirtza, the ten year old’s birthday arrived, Ezer Mizion was right there. Presents, great party food… Tirtza was thrilled!
Then came her sister’s Bas Mitzvah. A major milestone in the family but I had no strength or time to do anything. There they were again. The substitute Mommies. They styled my daughter’s hair, making her feel like a princess. They created a super slideshow of pictures of my daughter since she was born. There was a stunning balloon arrangement. The food was out of this world. And they even came after the celebration to clean up!
Miriam is 5 years old now. She goes to kindergarten and sings her kindergarten songs all day long. She plays house and laughs with her friends. She doesn’t even remember that terrible time when she was sick. But we do and we’ll never stop saying thank you to Ezer Mizion.
