Israʾel: My parents passed away one day after the other. My father in the evening and my mother the next morning. They were sick. All the orphans were taken to Shfeya.
We went to school there. My sisters and my brother were taken there as well. My fifth brother was run over by a car. We all lived together in Shfeya, all my siblings: Yiḥya, Israʾel, Braḥa, Rina – may she live long – and Shlomo Z”L. Shlomo studied in Shfeya.
ʾAviva: After the wedding, I had a daughter. On the sixth day, his brother Shlomo came to us and said he wants to go to a party in Shfeya. I gave him a peach, some quinces, everything I had I gave him. He went to his sister Rina who was married in Ben Yehuda, Tel Aviv. Rina told him: “Stay at my place and leave on Sunday.”
Israʾel: He said he had a party to go to. His friends were in a farm in Shfeya. He called them and said: “Wait till I get there”. The minute he left a car came and hit him. He was taken to a hospital.
ʾAviva: On Friday, my stomach burnt. I was pregnant with my son Shilo. I didn’t understand what was wrong with me. Everyone was fine, my husband was fine, what is wrong with me? I got up Saturday morning and saw soldiers in front of the house. I asked “what are you doing here?” We are here for you, they said, and asked for some coffee. One of them said to me: “Listen sister, your brother in law is gone; a car hit him. He is gone now.” They came back Saturday evening, and again on Sunday. They said: “It is finished – he passed away.”
We were in Shfeya, where older Yemenites came to us, teachers came to teach us. We read the parasha (section from the Bible) in Yemenite. There were many Yemenite children there. They read the parasha and prayed in Yemenite.