Corona Creation Kids Explain: "We Didn't Place Police in the Classroom for No Reason"

Shuki Margalit and Ciki Klein are just in the fourth grade, yet they've created a work that has left many adults amazed. It's an ostensibly innocent creation meant to participate in a school competition on the topic of 'Good Middles'. But for some reason, the good middot during the Corona period are expressed in a surprisingly unique way.

Their creation, known for its uniqueness, has already been circulated on many internet sites, showcasing a class of children studying Torah during the Corona period while adhering to regulations, meaning maintaining distance and wearing masks. Even bottles of hand sanitizer rest on the tables. The rebbe sits across from the children behind a glass screen, and, quite alarmingly, a group of police officers stands at the room's entrance.

We tried to reach out to the charming children to hear more about what lies behind the creation and to open a window into their world during such a challenging time.

"We Wanted to Illustrate Torah Under Pressure"

"We study at the Rosen Cheder in Bnei Brak, and last week we returned to Cheder," Shuki Margalit recounts. "One of the teachers told us that in honor of returning to routine, a competition would be held on the topic of 'Good Middot'. He invited the students to create pieces on the topic, and next Tuesday an exhibition will display the submitted creations."

How does your creation connect to the topic of 'Good Middot'?

"We wanted to show children studying diligently and persistently - those are good middot," Shuki explains.

"Initially, we didn't think of portraying the study specifically during Corona, but as we started creating, we decided that the greatest persistence is during Corona because then it's hardest," adds his friend.

Did you also feel that during the Corona period it was hard for you to study?

Ciki: "Sometimes, yes."

Shuki: "Especially when we studied via phone. It was very uncomfortable and we weren't really inclined to study and persist."

How much time did you invest in this creation?

They ponder, and after ongoing calculation, they reply: "We worked on it for almost two weeks, every day in the afternoon for at least three hours."

Shuki explains: "We had to dismantle and rebuild several times because initially, the creation came out too small. I then turned to my grandfather who brought me a Midrash from 'Shir Hashirim' which states that someone who studies in their usual manner in their usual place receives double the reward, but someone who studies not in the usual place, like now during Corona, studying in synagogues, open spaces, and homes, receives a thousandfold reward. We had to include this in the creation too."

"While working, additional ideas constantly came to us," Ciki adds, "suddenly we added the bicycles on the side, the lamps, and the police officers, all of which were not initially there." 

Why did you decide to include the police officers? Why not just study without them?

"We wanted to show persistence even when it's difficult," the children explain.

Shuki: "Even though it's hard for the children and the police officers bother them, they continue studying."

What motivated you to invest so much in the creation?

"It was truly a big effort," Ciki agrees, "but we wanted to do it, so we didn't feel it was hard for us."

"It's exciting to know we accomplished such a big thing," Shuki adds, "Although we wanted to win, it wasn't that we invested just to win. For me, I already feel like I've won."

"Concerned About What the Children Experience"

In a conversation with Yossi Margalit, Shuki's father, he says that the day he took the creation to the Cheder, he met his neighbor, Rabbi Baruch Rosenblum. "Rabbi Rosenblum saw the creation and was so moved. He quoted the famous story of Rabbi Akiva who said 'Blessed are those who are grabbed by words of Torah.' because that's exactly the message seen here," he says.

The father adds: "I personally come from the medical world, I deal with medicine and strictly follow all guidelines, but at the same time, I think it's essential to convey the message to government agencies that Torah is our life. Just as there are people who, if told not to engage in sports, would not understand how that's possible, for us it's much more severe. If they don’t allow us to pray in an organized minyan or study as we need, we won't be able to breathe because they are our entire life. That's what I'm now explaining to both the old and new system members - we must find a balanced outline that will allow us to operate synagogues and places of study even during the winter when it's impossible to be in open areas."

He notes that following the publication of the creation online, he's been approached by many people and acquaintances. "I think we can learn so much from this creation about what our children are experiencing today," he explains. "Today's children are smart; they know well what's happening around them, they listen and understand."

Aren't you worried that the children created a group of police at the classroom entrance, as if that's the biggest nightmare?

"The truth is, yes. It troubles me to think that when my child thinks of Corona, he immediately imagines the threatening police officer. It pains me that this is the reality imposed on us and the reality we live in. I try to convey to my children the message that the police officers are here to help and protect us, but if there's a moment when he tries to depict learning under pressure and insists on including officers, it pains me."