Please take a moment...

Those of us living in Israel take for granted the relatively minor inconvenience of having to wait in line to enter pretty much any place where large numbers of people gather.  At the entrance to malls, bus stations, restaurants, etc, you will find the ubiquitous security guards with their electronic wands waiting to check anyone who enters for weapons or bombs.

If we are in a hurry we will mentally curse the plodding pace of the minimum-wage security guard... and if not, he or she probably doesn't even register on our mental radar. 

This strikes me as strange since so many of the bombings over the past few years have been averted, or at least minimized, by the brave actions of these under-appreciated people.  I am truly surprised that it has not become a cultural norm here to single them out more often for praise and recognition... or even a simple hello.

We glorify the body guards who protect heads of state for their willingness to 'take a bullet' for their 'principle' (the person they are protecting)... yet we don't really consider the statistical odds of these secret service agents and 'shabknikim' actually having to do so during the course of their career.  Yet the lowly mall, bus station or restaurant security guard in his/her loose-fitting blue or beige 'bowling shirt' (for lack of a better description), working for little pay and absolutely no recognition, has at least as good a chance of being injured or killed.

The two security guards in yesterday's attack did an impossibly brave thing and prevented a human bomb from making his way into a crowded bus station.  They knew the bomber looked suspicious.  He had been pointed out to them by a bus driver, and they still pursued him and used their presence to force him away from the crowds.  They were standing right in front of him when he exploded! 

How can anyone be that brave?

Think for a moment about the people who merit a formal greeting during your typical day:  The barista who sells you your coffee... the waitress who brings you your lunch... the bus driver along your regular route... the flower guy/girl where you pick up your weekly bouquet for shabbat.  All of these people get your attention - if only for a moment - when you make eye contact, acknowledge them as a fellow human being, and say hello... good morning... good afternoon... Shabbat Shalom.

How many times have you sullenly submitted your bag or backpack for inspection while carrying on a conversation with someone... never acknowledging the person who is searching for danger amongst your reading glasses and lipsticks?  How many times have you opened your bag while staring stoically into the mall where you wish you already were?   Did you say hello to the security guard?  Did you say 'thank you'?  Did you say 'Kol hakavod'?

That person in the ill-fitting over-garment has agreed to do much more than take a bullet for you.  He/she has agreed to be burned... blinded... mutilated by flying shrapnel... all so you can sip your cappuccino in relative security, or wander through the mall as if you lived in a country where people don't turn themselves into walking bombs.  He/she has agreed to do this for minimum wage.

Please take a moment and stop your conversation... stop staring longingly into the mall... put aside thoughts of your impending dinner... and look the security guard in the eye and say 'hello', 'thank you' or 'kol hakavod'.

In the mean time, may Lu'ay Abu Juma and Pavel Strotskin be granted a speedy recovery from their horrible injuries.