When I was growing up my Mom did not watch much television. The only exceptions that come to mind were when man landed on the moon and Lady Diana got married. 

Nowadays she does watch a bit, mostly British programs. 

When I last visited we watched Downton Abbey together. 

There is a scene where a housemaid who worked for the upper class family for two years comes back after a long absence. In the interim she has had the opportunity to better herself and now comes as the patron of an organization which helps young women who wish to have a chance for education. 

The family doesn’t recognize their former maid until the butler (it’s always the butler) reveals her secret. When they become aware she had worked for them for two years, the family was somewhat mortified. 

They were embarrassed that she had been in their service but they never really looked at her. 

She was invisible. 

When we go to the theater, we see the cast and recognize their contributions, but do we ever take a moment to realize that without the people behind the scenes, the show would not go on. 

Sometimes it’s the people we do not see, or pay attention to, who make all the difference. 

We need to see those who may appear to be invisible. 

In this week’s Torah portion, VaYishlach, which means “and he sent”, refers to the messengers Jacob sent to reach out to his brother Esau. This was Jacob’s attempt to placate his brother  to bring about rapprochement. 

The portion is full of dramatic interludes and large gestures. Buried in the narrative is a verse, a line, which reports that while Jacob was journeying back home, Rebecca’s baby nurse, whose name was Devora, passed away on the trip. 

Who was Devora?

We know every word in the Torah is carefully measured. No information is passed along unless it is didactic in nature, there must be a teaching for the future that is embodied within. 

So who was Devora, and what is she teaching us?

Devora is mentioned once before in the Torah narrative. When Rebecca was leaving her parents home to marry Isaac, they sent along her nanny, to accompany her along the way. 

But it seems from the commentaries that Devora was not just a nanny. She served as a mentor and teacher to Rebecca. She helped her raise her children and supported her through life’s challenges. She might have been very much behind the scenes, but she was a powerhouse of quiet strength and influence on Rebecca. 

When the time came for Rebecca to summon Jacob home, she needed a  messenger that both she and Jacob would trust.

She sent Devora, the only person who filled that requirement. 

We can only imagine the excitement Devora’s arrival must have engendered. Jacob had run away from home and built a family. His children only knew about his childhood from the stories he shared, about his parents, about Devora. When she actually appeared on the scene, it made it all come to life for his children. Here was a real live representative of Jacob’s past. 

When she passed away, the Torah records the sorrow and crying which accompanied her demise. 

Devora might not have been someone in the limelight, but quietly she had so much impact on the family of Jacob and was mourned deeply when she passed. 

Devora might have been behind the scenes, but the Torah is teaching us to look for those people who in their quiet way, make sure the show will go on. 

There is a true story told of a woman who was the daughter of a wonderful man, Rabbi Geldzahler. Her father was tragically killed in a car accident and someone gifted her an oil painting, a beautiful likeness of her father. She was driving home with the painting of her father propped up on the front seat when she stopped for gas. 

The attendant who came to pump gas (this is in New Jersey !) was a midget. As he tended to the car he noticed the painting and said-that is Rabbi Geldzahler!  Where is he, I haven’t seen him for months?

The woman had to share the tragic news that her father had died. But she couldn’t contain her curiosity, how had this gas attendant known her father?

The man responded that the Rabbi came to this station frequently and they always had a meaningful conversation. The man concluded by saying, 

“He was the only one who ever saw me”!

There are many opportunities to “see” the people in our lives, whose service may change our lives but they remain behind the scenes. 

Shabbat Shalom and so much love!