L'Chaim!

While waiting for E in the Sheraton in Tel Aviv, I had a beer and peanuts in the lobby. Seated by myself at a low table with upholstered chairs all around, I looked out at the swimmers in the Mediterranean. A couple with a pre-teen son came up and asked if they could share the table with me, seated themselves and started speaking Spanish to each other. Turns out they were from Miami and were here to celebrate their son’s bar mitzvah. I spoke with them in Spanish and English, as their other family members came up in ones and twos, joining the table. As family members came up and saw me in conversation with their family, they began introducing themselves to me. By the time there were a dozen family members present, the self-introductions of the newest members included an explanation of where they fit into the family, and where they were from, as they apparently assumed that I was some important family friend attending the bar mitzvah. I just kept introducing myself as “Greg.”