gratitude.
My mouth fell open.
Did I just agree to a set-up ?
“I’ve been searching for a really kind man,” she murmured. “This means so much to me.”
How the heck did this just happen?
She squeezed my hand and peered at me, her eyes two big pools of heartfelt gratitude.
Oh. No.
Now before you think that fixing up a stranger on the bus is completely bizarre, there are more things you need to understand about my Jewish community.
Rules for Dating in My World
#1. You’re married with a family by your mid-twenties. That’s because if you know anyone single … you fix them up.
#2. Even if you met someone five minutes ago, they’re technically no longer a stranger. You fix them up.
#3. It doesn’t matter how old or young you are yourself. You fix them up.
See the pattern here?
I knew that setting her up would be the right thing to do but I wasn’t exactly known for doing the right thing since my expulsion from Maimonides. To be honest, I just didn’t think I had the stomach for matchmaking. My mom’s made her fair share of matches over the years. In fact, she probably found the only two Jews in Hong Kong and had them on a date right now. The problem is, in my community the matchmaker’s job isn’t done until the engagement — or the breakup. She’s there to mediate and advise.
What if things went bad between Jeremy and Tamara? Did I really want to risk losing the one and only friend I had in Toronto now that Leah had cut me out?
Nuh-uh.
I really needed to learn how to think before I blurted. I glanced out the window, willing the bus to arrive at my stop already. How had I got myself into this?
The only bright side was that it might just be a fantastic opportunity to offload Jeremy. What if Leah considered dating him when she was ready to go out again? Yankees fan brother-in-law?
No way.
It didn’t seem to bother Tamara. Everyone’s always looking for perfection, but Tamara was obviously decent enough to overlook that kind of flaw in another human being.
I twisted my hands together on my lap and sighed. Maybe I needed to do something good and bring two people together. And if it worked, I could give Tamara some happiness.
I sighed. “I’ll talk to Jeremy next time I see him.”
She beamed at me.
“I don’t really know how to ask him,” I said.
“You’ll be perfect. How about if you and I meet at the library,” she said. “They have a little coffee shop.” She was dangling friendship in front of me like red meat. It was October and I was getting desperate.
“Okay,” I said.
Tamara threw her arm around my shoulder and gave me a light squeeze. Me making a match? Pretty crazy, huh? I’m sixteen years old and have never been on a date. So what do I know about fixing anybody up. But you want to know what’s nuttier?
I did it.
chapter 6
[email protected]
Friday night was the beginning of Shabbos. From sundown to darkness on Saturday, time stands still, and you’re unwired for twenty-five hours of calm. It gave me the chance to approach Jeremy when he came over for dinner. He stood at a stringy six feet, with chestnut eyes and a lock of black hair falling over his forehead. I hadn’t really paid much attention to his appearance before but now that I really looked at him, he didn’t score too badly on the looks scale.
When he and Uncle Eli came home from shul he wandered into the family room while my aunt and Leah puttered around the kitchen putting last-minute touches on the salads. Leah had made a fine chicken soup and the smell wafted through the air, beckoning me to the kitchen, but I held my ground. Jeremy smiled at me and sank into the leather recliner. I positioned myself across from him on the matching couch, watching him leaf through a copy of Jewish Family Life magazine. He glanced up at me with a quizzical smile.
I swallowed hard and glanced at the hallway. Mira, Eli, and Leah were drifting to the dining room table, where Bubby was already sitting and waiting,
My mouth fell open.
Did I just agree to a set-up ?
“I’ve been searching for a really kind man,” she murmured. “This means so much to me.”
How the heck did this just happen?
She squeezed my hand and peered at me, her eyes two big pools of heartfelt gratitude.
Oh. No.
Now before you think that fixing up a stranger on the bus is completely bizarre, there are more things you need to understand about my Jewish community.
Rules for Dating in My World
#1. You’re married with a family by your mid-twenties. That’s because if you know anyone single … you fix them up.
#2. Even if you met someone five minutes ago, they’re technically no longer a stranger. You fix them up.
#3. It doesn’t matter how old or young you are yourself. You fix them up.
See the pattern here?
I knew that setting her up would be the right thing to do but I wasn’t exactly known for doing the right thing since my expulsion from Maimonides. To be honest, I just didn’t think I had the stomach for matchmaking. My mom’s made her fair share of matches over the years. In fact, she probably found the only two Jews in Hong Kong and had them on a date right now. The problem is, in my community the matchmaker’s job isn’t done until the engagement — or the breakup. She’s there to mediate and advise.
What if things went bad between Jeremy and Tamara? Did I really want to risk losing the one and only friend I had in Toronto now that Leah had cut me out?
Nuh-uh.
I really needed to learn how to think before I blurted. I glanced out the window, willing the bus to arrive at my stop already. How had I got myself into this?
The only bright side was that it might just be a fantastic opportunity to offload Jeremy. What if Leah considered dating him when she was ready to go out again? Yankees fan brother-in-law?
No way.
It didn’t seem to bother Tamara. Everyone’s always looking for perfection, but Tamara was obviously decent enough to overlook that kind of flaw in another human being.
I twisted my hands together on my lap and sighed. Maybe I needed to do something good and bring two people together. And if it worked, I could give Tamara some happiness.
I sighed. “I’ll talk to Jeremy next time I see him.”
She beamed at me.
“I don’t really know how to ask him,” I said.
“You’ll be perfect. How about if you and I meet at the library,” she said. “They have a little coffee shop.” She was dangling friendship in front of me like red meat. It was October and I was getting desperate.
“Okay,” I said.
Tamara threw her arm around my shoulder and gave me a light squeeze. Me making a match? Pretty crazy, huh? I’m sixteen years old and have never been on a date. So what do I know about fixing anybody up. But you want to know what’s nuttier?
I did it.
chapter 6
[email protected]
Friday night was the beginning of Shabbos. From sundown to darkness on Saturday, time stands still, and you’re unwired for twenty-five hours of calm. It gave me the chance to approach Jeremy when he came over for dinner. He stood at a stringy six feet, with chestnut eyes and a lock of black hair falling over his forehead. I hadn’t really paid much attention to his appearance before but now that I really looked at him, he didn’t score too badly on the looks scale.
When he and Uncle Eli came home from shul he wandered into the family room while my aunt and Leah puttered around the kitchen putting last-minute touches on the salads. Leah had made a fine chicken soup and the smell wafted through the air, beckoning me to the kitchen, but I held my ground. Jeremy smiled at me and sank into the leather recliner. I positioned myself across from him on the matching couch, watching him leaf through a copy of Jewish Family Life magazine. He glanced up at me with a quizzical smile.
I swallowed hard and glanced at the hallway. Mira, Eli, and Leah were drifting to the dining room table, where Bubby was already sitting and waiting,
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