Noa became an orphan when she was just four. She never managed to recall how her mother was run over by the neighbors cara real accident, not one you brag about at coffee with your friends. Her father wore himself out protecting his daughter; life gave him wrinkles and gray hair way before his time. Noa, on her part, never actually visited her father. After tying the knot, shed gotten her own lifeher own Tel Aviv apartment, and occasionally she’d call, usually right before Rosh Hashanah.
Her husband, Yehuda, rolled his eyes every time Noa wanted to spend even a single shekel on what he called a lost cause. Noas father hoped his daughter would help him as he grew older; after all, isnt that basic Israeli family tradition? A neighbor, Ronen, suggested the ultimate Israeli solution: take her to court for alimony! Noa wont think less of you, Ronen reassured over hummus.
Suddenly, courthouse drama! Tears flowed faster than the water in the Jordan River.
Abba! Did you get so desperate waiting for me that you dragged me to court?
Noa, I havent had money for challah in two days. I counted on you keeping your promises, maybe I didnt teach you well enough he sighed.
You know I have a job, Noa protested, And Yehuda even bought you groceries and sent you money!
Yehuda, never missing a dramatic entrance, cut in: Stop with the guilt trip, old man! I send you money every month, not for you to spend on falafel outings!
Noa started crying and turned away, but then suddenly steeled herself: Theres something really important I need to tell you, she said.
Noa turned back. Her fathers voice was soft:
It was back when your mother was still alive. I came home from work, and she was sitting in the kitchen staring at the wall. Next to her was a big boxa little girl inside. Shed found you left by the recycling bins behind the shuk. We decided to raise you as our own daughter, Noa. I loved you from the first moment. Please forgive me, my child!
The lawsuit dissolved faster than sugar in tea. And, surprise surprise, it turned out Yehuda had never set foot in her fathers apartment. All the money sent had gone to parties, poker nights, and wooing girls at the beach. Noa was shocked that shed wasted years on a guy whose values couldnt fill a pita.
She packed her bags, left Yehuda, and moved in with her father. Now theyre happysharing Friday dinners, arguing about politics, and laughing at the fact that family in Israel is never boring.
