Category Archives: A Tale of Two Angels

A Fable: A Tale of Two Angels

The whole community broke into loud cries, and the people wept that night when hearing of the passing of their beloved Rabbi who had just died. Every one came together to pay their respects to this extraordinary man. They came to his home to offer their condolences to his family. The home that the Rabbi had lived in was enchanting and gave people the feeling of calm, serenity and peace. It was an inviting and warm place to come to.  People had concerns about who was to fulfill the Rabbi’s dream and hard work to have “March of the Millions in Washington D.C. the very next day. Unfortunately, there was a passing of tears instead of laughing. Every one had been anticipating this event as a happy and monumental day to come, no body could have foreseen this tragedy which had just hit them in the face. The Rabbi had realized a dream some years ago and he would not even be around to see the fruits of his labor of love.  He was not a charismatic person, one could call him more of a humble and non assuming individual. His quest was to lift the spirits and help guide people who came to him for guidance. He did not have much in life, but his beloved family.  His only daughter, Sandra, was overwhelmed and in disbelief with the outpouring of love for her father. On this stormy night many people were at her home to find out what the plan will be to continue the work of this humble old man.  The next day was supposed to be the big International event. Sandra felt the need to discuss who will now give the speech the next day.

A few years back the Rabbi had an idea to have a March on Washington. He had read about the Million Man March lead by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., however his feelings was to help Autistic people earn the respect and dignity they deserved. This came about because of the brutal death of his Autistic son. His son, Mark was 21 years old when he went off to college in NYC to become a Rabbi to follow in his father’s footsteps. Mark was walking down the street when a street gang started poking fun at him. They mocked his quirky and odd movements. Mark was being called names like Freak, Gay, ‘Queer, ‘Dork, Nerd, Cornflake, ‘Stinky, and Klutzy Clown. He had never even heard many of these derogatory names. Mark was beaten up, spit on, and pushed in to sewers on the nearby street. This incident was the beginning of the many bullying and harassing incidents that he started to face on a daily basis. His father and sister became so distraught that they felt enraged to do something about this. They started to do research realizing that this bullying was happening to other people who were Autistic. Mark could not bear this pain and took his own life using a shotgun. His family realized after his death that he had been beaten up and sexually abused.

Sandra was shedding tears over all the tragedies she had endured in recent years. The loss of her Autistic brother, her mother dying of Breast cancer, her husband Jack’s death caused by a drunk driver, and now the death of her father.  The only family she had left was her only daughter, Lana.

Suddenly Sandra saw her brother before her. Mark was carrying his book bag over his shoulders. He seemed to be giving her a message of hope to continue his father’s work. Sandra decided to reach out to Mark’s best friend, Jephunneh, to help her move forward in her quest to educate people about Autism and other disabilities. Jephunneh always had a sparkle in his eye and a smile on his face.  He felt honored.

As every one turned to bed, Jephunneh went to take his medication and inject himself with his insulin pen. Jephunneh was very excited and immensely serene to speak on  his friend’s family’s behalf. However Jephunneh was low on insulin.  He was unsure what to do. He gave himself the rest of the insulin hoping heard be fine in the morning. Jephunneh has had diabetes his whole life.

The very next morning Sandra went in to wake Jephunneh for his bright inspiring speech when she found him not moving and unable to wake him up. She called in the paramedics and the emergency personnel to try and revive him. Unfortunately Jephunneh was already dead for the past few hours.

The people were starting to gather near the Washington monument. Sandra was in a panic. Her followers told Sandra, there were thousands of people appearing with their signs posted filled with messages of hope and support. Sandra nervously looked out the window seeing thousands of faces, she noticed one of the signs which reads, *Nothing about us, without us*. She realized that she must give her father’s speech.

As she walks to the podium, to deliver her father’s speech, she began saying:

There have been tragic events in my life recently, but I have to continue the message my brother and my deceased father would want to give. I am encouraged by all of you who have gathered here today to hear me speak on behalf of my father. I know his message is of hope, tolerance, and love of humankind.

Sandra began the speech with just flickering of eyes gazing on her.

“Today is when we listen to powerful stories coming from the heart. I introduce you all to listen to every word with nothing more than a kind heart.  Disability is a part of us all, no matter who we are, we are not immune to having someone in our life have some disability that has impaired them in some manner.  Even those who are disabled have every right to stand up for who we are and have our voices heard.” Sandra cries tearfully, stops her father’s speech for just a moment, when she resumes she states, “One day there was a man named Jephunneh who was a good friend to my brother. He lived such a joyous life and gave us the blessings we need to hear (sighs and crying from Sandra). I can’t believe what had happened to my brother. If only his friend could have made him stronger.

{ ~The Angel of Jepphunneh~ joyously flying toward the crowd.}

Jepphunneh’s wings flew and soared around the crowd of millions of people. He flew, twisted, turned, and slowly came to a stop as he stood next to Sandra on the stage.

Jepphunneh spoke:

“We are here today because Human rights affects us all.  It all started with the Autistic rights movement that tells how every one in society is an individual who has the very need to communicate, contribute with their own unique thinking, and understand who they are. Communication is clear and presents fulfillment of what attributes to our well being. Some people rebel against only knowing their own way while die fighting for their lives. We must all have an understanding of these behaviors in order to be able to embrace the rights of every Human being in order to love the society we built.  This not only is important for society, but is important in our every day interactions. Not every person communicates the same way, like every living creature expresses themselves differently.  Love is something that connects us all man to female, creature to creature. We are here for the spirit of our soul to connect, learn, and follow our mission. Furthermore, the love we give is the love we gain. Be thankful and courteous to all those who are around you no matter who you may meet; never let your society down. I know many of you have contributed to bullying others, but we need to all communicate in a way by using our voice, body language, or by other means of communication. Feel free to listen and communicate when its your turn. For the journey of a thousands words spoken is just a short baby step to your fullest potential for you to gain your spiritual identity…

(Tears flow through the eyes from every one around)

As a rainbow appeared in the distance over the mountains, the many colors resembled the infrastructure of life and who we are.   A guardian angel appeared out of nowhere:  “As the colors of the rainbow appear in the sky, each of the colors of the rainbow will appear over each one of you. Take the color as a part of who you are and remember how important this day was for you.” The guardian angel vanished out of nowhere, but Sandra cried as she suddenly saw Jephunneh appear with her brother, Mark, her mother, and her father flying in the sky above.  She held her daughter’s hand as she watched them disappear in the sky, smiling for hope of a better tomorrow.

OUT, J