From Darkness to Light: Ilanit Tzur-Aryeh's Journey of Faith and Resilience

"I want my story to come to light, and for you to be the messenger of Hashem to make it happen." These were the words of Ilanit Tzur-Aryeh, who survived a near-fatal car accident and made a miraculous recovery. She shared her journey with author Merav Magni, who was captivated by Ilanit’s life, and together they transformed it into a book. Their joint work, 'What Gift Shall I Bring You', has just been published, and Merav shares the process behind its creation for the first time.

"I work in education," says Merav Magni, 45, who lives in Shvut Rachel, is married, and has eight kids, and even at her young age already boasts a grandchild. "Often, while writing, I found myself in need of stories that would fit the messages I wanted to convey, so I ended up creating them. These classes are meant to be engaging, and I had to include interesting stories.

"I could truly see that Hashem was guiding me towards writing touching and inspiring books, and I wanted to keep doing that. A mutual friend of Ilanit and myself, a talented book editor named Limor Ben Avi, who eventually edited the book, suggested to Ilanit – after she expressed her desire to share her story with the world – that she reach out to me. After an introductory meeting, I dove headfirst into her extraordinary life story."

A Mission to Save Lives

Merav’s first meeting with Ilanit, 43, married with four children and living in Jerusalem’s Kiryat Yovel neighborhood, was held at Ilanit’s home. "Right at the start of our conversation, Ilanit told me about the very severe car accident she experienced, which led to a positive change in her life. She wants everyone to know that 'there's nothing like Hashem', that He always knows what He’s doing, and everything is for the best. The book narrates her life story, from the phases before the accident, during the rehabilitation, and of course, after it," says Magni.

"Ilanit always faced challenges and hardships. She was born into a traditional family in Netivot, and from a young age began questioning her path as a religious girl. Eventually, she decided to completely leave the path of Torah and mitzvot. Shortly thereafter, she traveled to India, and upon returning to Israel, she lived on a kibbutz. One Friday, just before Shabbat, while driving on the Beit She'an Valley highway, a car attempted to overtake and collided head-on with her vehicle. Ilanit was thrown from the car and landed among rocks on the roadside. In those moments, her life changed forever."

How severe was the injury?

"By divine providence, an IDF unit was nearby, but after a few minutes, seeing how dire her condition was, they ceased treatment and waited for a doctor to declare her death. The soldiers on scene had already covered her with a black sheet, having lost all hope. When the paramedic arrived, they told him there was no one left to save, but he replied: 'Absolutely not, I came to save a life', and he began to resuscitate her using a straw for 50 minutes.

"Ilanit arrived at the hospital in critical condition, with severe injuries. She suffered a head injury, making it impossible for her to communicate with her environment. Even after she miraculously woke up, doctors told her she would never walk again, and that she required a long and arduous rehabilitation. But of course, Hashem, who can accomplish anything, had other plans."

Tears in My Eyes

Excitement resonates in Magni's voice as she recounts the great miracle that happened to Ilanit, who is both the heroine of the book and her personal hero. "Today, Ilanit manages to do many things that no one believed she would be able to. She is married, the mother of four children, and perhaps most importantly, she has wholeheartedly returned to the path of Torah and mitzvot. Although she began the process of becoming stronger in her faith before the accident, the accident greatly intensified this, infusing her life with a constant and significant presence of Hashem."

"Beyond Ilanit's struggles, and without comparison of course, I also had no small difficulties while writing the book. It took me over a year to write it. In the end, Ilanit did recover, but a head injury is something that never completely goes away. Not always did she remember everything I wanted to hear, and often she remembered too much, which was very complicated.

"Initially," Magni recalls, "I thought I wouldn't manage to fill 200 pages with the story of a woman who survived an accident. Sadly, there are quite a few stories like this. But then I met Ilanit and was profoundly moved. People usually do not accept the hard things in their lives the way Ilanit does. Most people, at best, accept their fate. But she sees them as outright gifts."

According to Magni, she also faced additional challenges in writing the book, regarding the honesty and professional integrity that, in her view, should accompany anyone writing a widely distributed book. "As a believing woman, it was very difficult for me to write about Ilanit’s abandonment of religious practice from a non-critical perspective. This was a real struggle for me. I didn’t truly understand why she disconnected from Judaism, particularly during her yeshiva studies. So, we simply tried to understand it together. At one point I even suggested she find someone else to write about this period, but eventually, we worked through it and I managed to write words I genuinely stood by."

"Moreover," Magni says, "I distinctly remember that when I was writing the book, I was very focused on my goal, not letting my emotions overwhelm me. But when I stepped away from the daily process and read the book in one breath, tears filled my eyes. One aspect that touched me deeply was knowing that Ilanit didn’t have the means to publish the book on her own. She crowd-funded it, gathering support from anyone she could. At the same time, she didn't cease praying at the graves of righteous individuals and sought blessings from rabbis for the success of her book. And still, she diligently strives daily to ensure many are exposed to it and can draw strength from it.

"And thanks to Hashem, we're receiving very touching responses from people. One of the more heartwarming yet saddening responses came from the former chief military rabbi, Rabbi Ronzi, two weeks before he passed away from a serious illness. We knew he was very sick, so it wasn’t easy.

"Incidentally," Magni concludes, "the book's title, 'What Gift Shall I Bring You', is taken from a famous song by Ehud Banai, an artist Ilanit was very connected to, and who is mentioned several times in the book. The title encapsulates her almost superhuman ability to view everything that happens to her as a complete gift from Hashem. She feels Hashem thought about what to give her as a gift and decided to give her the accident. That, ultimately, is the main message she wants to share with the world. She prays with all her heart that this indeed will happen, and of course, I join her and try to help as much as I can."