The happenings of Saturday February 15, 2025 in Kochi, India
We woke the boys at 8:30AM on what would be a Shabbat morning to remember. The hotel toilet was a disaster (spraying and not flushing), but hey — hot water and good water pressure in the shower? Small wins. Chaim was still down for the count with a stomach bug, so the boys and I went to shul on our own. We waited all morning for a minyan, but it never happened. While we waited, Amichai read Parshat Shemot to his brothers and peppered them with comprehension questions like a mini teacher. It was adorable.
Eventually, the visiting rabbi from the Star K recommended we begin davening. I was disappointed we wouldn't be able to hear Torah reading from one of the shul's Torahs. Israeli visitors came and went while we davened. In theory ten men had shown up, just not at the same time. The boys closed services for the few of us who were there by leading Adon Olam, and yes — I cried. We ate lunch in the meeting house across the street with the Star K rabbis and a smaller group than Friday night. Amichai sat beside the last Jew still living in Kochi, also named Chaim. He asked Chaim thoughtful questions, and I had the privilege of talking with him too.
Chaim made a point of telling me five important points:
- Being the last Jew is lonely. Most of the Jews in Kochi left for Israel out of deep Zionist ideals.
- His first language was Malabar, then English. He doesn’t speak Hebrew because there is no one to practice with.
- His aunt, the last Jewish woman in Kochi, died in August 2024.
- Hindu and Muslim locals sometimes convert to other faiths.
- Christianity here is tinged with Hindu practices, using outside shrines and incense.
We ended lunch with z’mirot/songs for Shabbat. Chaim sang Dror Yikra and Tzur Mishelo in the traditional Kochi tunes. It was incredibly moving. Before we left, he gifted us two small spiral books about his aunt and the Jewish community here. I couldn’t say no — and didn’t want to. They were perfect for the boys’ Jewish Figures journal pages.
Back at the hotel, our Chaim was finally fever-free. I put Amichai and Eitan in charge and crashed for a nap…only to be awoken by shrieking. Shai had gotten hurt, which turned out to be the result of him and Matanel roughhousing Amichai and Eitan. I gave a stern "mom speech" about the uptick in rudeness I’d noticed over the last week or so. “Not Kirby Kind,” I reminded them. Screens were suspended. Educational websites only. I knew it was because they were feeling cooped up with little free play and looked forward to when we would be the masters of our own time again.
We recovered with some games and a quiet dinner. Chaim, who could finally join us, nibbled on plain pasta — cautious but upright. After Havdalah, we packed. Tomorrow: Munnar.
