Kamil has hatched a new idea: learning Hebrew. “Every day we’ll learn a word and use it as a password,” he says. Fortunately, one of the books we brought from that abandoned house was a German-Hebrew dictionary. “It’s impossible to be a Jew without the original Hebrew language, where all the ancient spiritual treasures are hidden. Every day we’ll learn a word, and it will revive us.”
The communists and Bundists object. If we study, they say, we should study Yiddish, not Hebrew. Yiddish is the language of the people, and it should be cherished. Hebrew is the language of the religious rituals that clouded the minds of the masses. Hebrew belongs to prehistory and not to history. We must study Yiddish, the language of the tormented people who were deported to the camps. Hebrew will lead us far away from ourselves, into the primeval darkness.
There are many more strong objections. Kamil makes the decision. “Whoever wants to learn Hebrew will learn it, and whoever wants to learn Yiddish, that’s fine, too. Both are holy languages. The first Hebrew word we will learn is avodah. Avodah means work but also avodat kodesh, holy work. This describes our situation here. Let’s repeat: avodah.”
This gesture of goodwill is also met with objections. Fortunately, Tsila has prepared a dessert of compote from dried fruit that the fighters have brought. The compote bridged the differences of opinion and improved the mood.
ISIDOR AND HIS TWO COMPANIONS have completed their personal training and in two days will begin to drill with a squad. For their first mission, Kamil added them to Felix’s expanded squad, which went to catch fish in the lake, not far from the base.
The three have gotten stronger and no longer walk like raw recruits. In a short time they have learned the various ways of walking and are pleased with their first assignment.
We spread out the net and waited for about an hour. When we lifted it, we found, to our surprise, five big fish and about ten small ones. We would have tried again, but a sudden rain came down and drenched us. We put the catch in sacks and returned to the base.
Kamil saw the fish and called out, “Marvelous! What a wonderful meal Tsila will make us.” Kamil gets excited about things that make everyone happy. His excitement brings out the boy in him. The fighters hurried to help Tsila and Miriam prepare the fish and cook them on the coals.
It was a meal fit for a king. We sang Russian marches till late at night.
Kamil had a few drinks and announced: “Today we rescued from oblivion the Hebrew word avodah. The word avodah, unlike its cousin melakhah, which means labor, also has the connotation of holiness. The opposite of avodat kodesh is avodah zarah, idolatry, and there is also avodah shebalev, work of the heart—prayer. Every Hebrew word we acquire is a gift. It holds within it so much of our spiritual property. Do not forget, we are the last guardians of these treasures.”
Kamil was not drunk, but his spirits were high and he was clearly connected to worlds beyond our reach. Tears eventually came to his eyes. He tried to stop them, but he was overcome with weeping and slipped away into the darkness.