Hand of G-d?

There are things that happen, unplanned, that can only be explained by saying that it was Siyate D'Shmaya, The Hand of G-d. 

I felt that way tonight at a very lovely Sheva Brachot, traditional Jewish post wedding party.  The hostess set up a little party game for us to play. There were two sets of small folded pieces of paper. When we read what we had we were to make it like a blessing or advice for the young couple. And the other paper had a Hebrew letter. We each picked a pair of the papers, having no idea what phrase or what letter. Then when it was our turn to read, we had to pick a suitable answer starting with the letter. 

One person had picked a paper that said (in Hebrew, since this is Israel):

"The best restaurant is..."

The neighbor who had to name "the best restaurant" had pick a "ב," (bet) so she answered "בית, bayit, house."

The piece of paper I had picked said:

"The town where you'll live in the future."

And guess what letter I picked... Yes, really, it was a "ש" for "שילה Shiloh!" No joke and no cheating. It had to be  Siyate D'Shmaya. Nothing else makes sense.

מזל טוב!!

MAZAL TOV!!

Siyate d'Shmaya, G-d's Hand, Amazing How Things Work Out

Siyate d'Shmaya is a wonderful principle. So many stories are told of people were upset at missing a flight, and then the flight crashed. And there were some more minor examples, like what happened to me this week.

I had been planning on spending Tuesday night with a friend in Jerusalem and then going with her to Matan on Wednesday morning. Actually I had a lot planned for Tuesday. It was Rosh Chodesh Nissan, and I was expecting three woman over Monday night so they could join the Women's Rosh Chodesh Prayers at Shiloh Hakeduma Tel Shiloh Tuesday morning.

I still had a few things to do for their sleeping arrangements when I went to work Tuesday early afternoon, so I was very lucky that a neighbor called to say he'd be apssing by Sha'ar Binyamin and would take me home. He got there early; I mentioned it to the "evening manager," who told me to leave early. So I did and was able to finish.

We had a wonderful morning at the Tel Shiloh.

I had been planning/hoping to get some cleaning done in the afternoon, but my daughter called saying that she needed me to babysit the younger kids.  That's lots more fun than cleaning.

While packing to go to Jerusalem after babysitting I called my friend, but she said that it wouldn't work out after all.  So it seemed like I'd get something done after babysitting.

After babysitting I made it home and then got a message reminding me that there would be our weekly T'hillim, Psalms at a neighbor in a different neighborhood. So I quickly went there. Then after getting home and sitting down to dinner, I got a call that I was needed as a photographer, emergency.

One of the women who had slept over was making a large festive event in her son's community of Shvut Rachel, and they didn't have anyone to take important family photos. I hadn't planned on going, since I'm still in the year of mourning for my mother. But this was a very needed "job," responsibility. I wasn't there to eat and listen to the music.

Now, if I had gone to Jerusalem as planned I wouldn't have been able to take the pictures, nor join my friends for T'hillim. Right?  That's Siyate d'Shmaya.