A few months ago, I shared some of the frustrations and the amusing anecdotes that olim experienced when navigating Israel’s public transportation system. If you’re an oleh (new immigrant), I hardly need to explain. It often takes courage, patience, and humor to survive your daily commute. But alongside the chaos, there are also moments that remind us of the uniqueness of Israel and why we love living here - small, heartwarming encounters that reveal the kindness of strangers and the spirit of Israelis and olim alike.
Today, I’d like to spotlight those moments and share some uplifting stories from olim who saw or experienced unexpected kindness on their travels.
A lost phone
About a year ago, I was traveling home late at night. It was late, it had been a long day, and I was exhausted. To make matters worse, my phone had died, and I didn't have my charger with me. As if things couldn’t take a worse turn, only after stepping off the bus did I realize that I’d left my phone on the bus. Panicked, I waited for the next bus and asked the driver if he knew the previous bus driver or had his number. He didn't, but he told me that the bus was now probably at the parking lot where all the buses end their routes and to go there. So at about midnight, I found myself wandering around a deserted parking lot, looking for the bus I had taken.
There I found a 78 bus and asked the driver if I could search for my phone. He said yes and even helped me look for it. When we couldn't find it, he offered to call it for me. I told him the battery was dead, but we could try. I didn’t have much hope, but I didn’t know what else to do. To my shock, as soon as I called, someone picked up! It was the lady who had been sitting behind me on the bus.
She told me that she saw me get off without my phone and tried to run after me but was too late. So she'd taken my phone home, charged it, and waited for me to call! She told me where I could meet her to fetch it, bearing in mind it was now almost 1 a.m. at this point. Without a second thought, the bus driver drove me to meet this lady, even though he'd finished his shift and the meeting point was not on his route.
Lost in Jerusalem
Yael, an olah from the United States, recalls getting hopelessly lost in Jerusalem one night while she was still in seminary. She was walking around Jerusalem, with no idea where she was or where to go. Most buses weren’t running, so she got on a random bus. It was quite empty, so she sat close to the driver, explained that she was lost, and asked for directions on how to get home.
Seeing she was upset, the driver offered to drop her where she needed to be, even though it meant going slightly off-route. As they drove, they struck up a conversation. The driver told her that he had a daughter her age and hoped that if she were lost, someone would help her in the same way. He dropped Yael off close to the seminary and directed her on how to get home.
“He was honestly an amazing man,” she says. “I wish I could meet him again.”
Hashavat aveida – returning a lost item
Michelle, who made aliyah from the UK, recalled that her son once dropped his wallet on the bus and didn’t even realize it was lost until much later. Not knowing where to look or how to retrieve it, he assumed it was gone forever.
But several days later, he got a call from a kupat holim. Someone had found his wallet on the bus, looked inside to find his kupat holim card and to see which kupa he belonged to, and took his wallet to his branch. The kupa called him and said, “We have your wallet. You can come and fetch it.”
To this day, Michelle and her son still don’t know who this kind stranger was, but they were very grateful and have never forgotten the gesture.
Compassion in a difficult moment
On a long bus ride home one day, 76-year-old Batya from the US was not feeling well. Suddenly she felt much worse and vomited - all over the bus - an embarrassing moment for anyone. But instead of flinching, the passengers on the bus were very kind, recalled Batya. One person covered the floor with a plastic bag, and another even offered to walk her to a nearby mall.
A soldier’s kumta
Daniel shared a small but memorable moment. One day during his commute home from work, he noticed a soldier getting off the bus but leaving her kumta behind on the seat. A young teenage boy who had been sitting next to her acted fast. He grabbed the kumta, told the driver to wait, sprinted off the bus until he caught up to the soldier, returned her kumta, and then ran back - the driver patiently holding the bus for him.
Public transport in Israel can test even the calmest among us. But these stories remind us that behind the delays, detours, and packed buses are real people, and those kind strangers who go out of their way to make someone’s day easier or a little brighter.
Often, the journey isn’t just about getting from one place to another. It’s about the people we meet, the interactions we have, and these small moments of kindness that we encounter along the way.