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swarming about us. I was in such a hurry that my wallet fell out of my pants pocket. I bent down and quickly snatched it up. It was a red cloth wallet, waterproof, but I had wrapped it in a plastic bag anyway.

‘Yossi, I’ve been wanting to ask you what you keep in that wallet,’ Kevin said. ‘I know where your passport, money, and watch are. So what do you have in that wallet that you never let it out of your sight? What are you hiding in there?’

‘It’s a long story,’ I said with a grin.
‘I’m listening,’ Kevin said.

We seated ourselves in the shade. ‘Have you ever heard of the Kabbalah?’ I began.

‘It’s some kind of Jewish mysticism, isn’t it?’ Kevin said.

‘Exactly,’ I replied, ‘but the truth is, I don’t know any more than that about it myself. I had an uncle named Nissim, which in Hebrew means ‘miracles.’ He was born in Turkey and studied at the yeshiva in Tiberias. Then he wandered about Europe making his living as a cantor, ritual slaughterer, and performing circumcisions. Eventually he settled in Israel and opened a small toy store in Rehovot.

‘My uncle was always reading old religious books. I didn’t know it then, but he was studying the Kabbalah. He had his own special way of life and particular eating habits. He never visited a doctor and refused to take any medicines. Whenever he didn’t feel well, he would fast for a day or two until he was better.