| Upon hearing that I was due to visit Israel, Octavio excused himself and ran to the back of the restaurant, only to reemerge a few minutes later with a sealed envelope in hand. When I asked what was in the envelope, he replied that it was a prayer. Octavio had heard of the Western Wall, and the tradition of placing written prayers into the cracks of the wall. As he did not have the means to make the journey himself, he wondered whether I would be willing to complete the journey for him. Naturally I accepted, however circumstance intervened, and I would not make it to Israel until January of 2010, five years after meeting Octavio. |