A Message from the Beyond: A Dream of Connection

In the newsletter 'Hashgacha Pratit', a volunteer at a nursing home shared a personal story of witnessing a revelation from beyond, and this is his story: "Near the synagogue where I pray, I saw a notice seeking a Jewish volunteer to visit the nearby senior home after services to help elderly Jews put on tefillin. I responded to the notice and got to know these wonderful individuals, each having had various adventures in their life. Among them was a Russian Jew named Arkady, who knew little about Judaism, and I, of course, helped him with tefillin as well. Recently, Arkady appeared unsettled, unlike his usual self.

"I asked him if everything was alright, and he tried to tell me about a dream he had the previous night. With the help of someone who understood more Russian, I learned that his mother appeared to him night after night in his dreams, and it seemed she wasn't at peace. She wanted something from him. I told him, 'Surely she wants you to do something for the elevation of her soul.' I found a book of Psalms with a Russian translation and told him to say what he could each day, even if just one chapter.

"Noticing one of the residents who knew how to pray and study examining some Mishnah, I asked him to study with Arkady for the elevation of his mother's soul. Then it occurred to me how important it is to say Kaddish for her. I wanted to know her yahrzeit, and Arkady replied, 'My mother died in March.' These were the last days of Adar, which corresponds with March on the Gregorian calendar, so I assumed we had probably missed her yahrzeit for this year. I explained to Arkady, 'We need to match the Gregorian date her mother passed with the Hebrew calendar of that year to say Kaddish on the correct date,' and we parted ways that day.

"The next day, when I returned to help with tefillin as usual, I learned about what happened after I left. Arkady was eager to check the calendar, and it turned out that the day before was exactly his mother's yahrzeit! He contacted a rabbi from a synagogue he knew and asked them to say Kaddish that day! I was amazed and deeply moved. Apparently, his mother had special merits, allowing her this opportunity to remind her son for her benefit. The timely occurrence of Arkady's dreams led to the revelation of her yahrzeit, and arrangements were made to say Kaddish and study Psalms and Mishnah for her, exactly on the day of her judgment in the afterlife. I felt privileged to witness this act of divine providence, a message from the beyond. Indeed, I was fortunate to see this unveiling firsthand."