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Paraplegics Face Judaism
(Continued from Page 7)
because of the grit, guts and will
power he has demonstrated. Medi
cally, this man has been able to do
things which defy medicine. He
conducts a very lucrative export
and import business from his
wheelchair and although he has
to be carried or wheeled from place
to place, he seems to be jovial, con
tented and hopeful. He makes gen
erous contributions to charity and
gives inspirational strength to
others.
He is a fine writer and a splendid
poet, aside from being a successful
businessman. He is also a good Jew
who attends religious services regu
larly and is really a tower of
strength to all the men at the hos
pital. Jews and Gentiles alike seek
his friendship and look up to him
with admiration. He supports his
parents in good style and never
turns down any cause that comes
knocking at his hospital door. I
have had many long discussions
with him and although at rare in
tervals, to be sure, he may know a
sense of pessimism and a feeling of
defeatism, he sincerely believes
that his terrible handicap is a sort
of blessing in disguise, for it has
enabled him to think as never be
fore and it has given him an insight
into life such as he never knew in
his normal condition.
There is only one problem which
troubles him (as well as all the
paraplegics) and that is the ques
tion of being wanted by the oppo
site sex. He has often discussed
the problem with me and generally
he has come to the conclusion that
there isn’t a woman on earth who
would want him, who could endure
the hardship of being united with
him. But he is quite reconciled to
that status, especially since admir
able people, both men and women,
constantly delight to visit him and
to converse with him. There is a
possibility of marriage, but it seems
to be rather remote, he feels, and it
seems to me that this is one of the
most disturbing factors in the life of
a paraplegic. He has a feeling that
no matter how much he may
achieve, he is not to be regarded
as a man like other men. Per
sonally, I have had an unusual ex
perience with a paraplegic at that
hospital which militates to the con
trary.
There was a case of a young Jew
ish boy who was wonderfully
looked after by a nurse who worked
in another hospital in Framingham.
This young woman, of Czech-
American-Christian origin, became
so enamored of this particular para
plegic that I was asked to train her
in Judaism. Eventually I had the
honor and joy of marrying them
and we arranged a rather elaborate
affair for the couple. I constantly
mention this case to my friend J. P.
but since it hasn’t happened in his
own life he has not yet been con
vinced.
A second paraplegic is an older
man in his middle years whose son
was killed while serving with the
Navy. His name is well-known to
American baseball fans, and his
story is really one of the epic tales
of the war. When his son was killed,
this former Big League outfielder
did everything possible to enlist.
He was rejected and turned down
several times because of poor
health, bad teeth and age. He spent
a good deal of money to put him
self in good shape and was finally
accepted. He went into the Navy,
feeling he was taking his son’s
place. The wife was reconciled to
this condition. While aboard ship
a mine exploded, tearing the vessel
in two, drowning many of the men,
and wounding him so that he will
remain a paraplegic for life. Last
year a special day was designated
at the Boston ball park in his honor.
Thousands of fans cheered him and
contributed a respectable sum of
money for a home which has since
been built for him and where he
recently moved.
This man is constantly torn by
pain. There is hardly an hour when
he is free from suffering. His won
derful, devoted wife is always at
his side, ever giving him loving
care and attention. This has no
doubt helped immeasurably to alle
viate his pain and it certainly
makes him feel that he belongs,
that he has not been cast out by
society. This feeling is further
strengthened in him because he is
often called upon by organizations
to speak on good will, on patriot
ism, or Americanism, and he loves
these opportunities, for they afford
him a chance to talk about him
self and his son, as examples of true
devotion to Americanism on the
part of American Jews.
Unfortunately this heroic indi
vidual has not been able to develop
other interests in life, such as busi
ness or reading, and during the
hours that he is free from contacts
with people he is always brooding
and inevitably indulging in self
pity, especially since he feels that
the world is still hardly a safe place
for decent people to live in. He
wonders whether the sacrifices
made by the men who died or were
wounded were worth while. The
approach to him is quite different
from that of other men because this
gentleman is inclined to be more
cynical than the others. But in the
main, he knows that he is a per
sonality who has had a distiguished
career, who is highly respected by
Jews and Gentiles alike, and that
gives him an element of strength
and endurance which are well but-
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The Southern Israelite
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