The Matchmaker's Gift(47)

Nathan nodded thoughtfully. “I agree, Mrs. Glikman. Sara is special. The smartest, most beautiful girl I know.”

“Intelligent, yes. Beautiful, absolutely.” Sara’s mother raised an eyebrow. “But I’m talking about something else.” She pointed to where Hindel stood near the window, on the opposite side of the room. “You see my other daughter there? Also beautiful. Also smart. But not so complicated. You understand?” She gestured around the crowded apartment. “For Hindel, this world is the right size. But for Sara, this world is … too small. She does not think I know this, but I do.”

“You’re worried that she won’t keep your traditions?” Nathan asked.

She patted his hand again and sighed. “When we came to this country, I knew what would be. We cannot keep everything as it was. Sara will be a good wife and a good mother. She has a good heart, and in this new world, that is worth as much as a pious one.”

“I understand,” Nathan said. “I think my mother would say the same about me. So, perhaps, Sara and I are well suited.”

Sara’s mother tilted her head. She had not yet let go of Nathan’s hand. “You are a good boy, tateleh. I’m sure you make your mother proud.”

Sara stood apart from the conversation, but she had heard every word. Even in the midst of maternal grief, it was clear that Malka Glikman hoped for a wedding. In her mind, the only antidote to death was the unbroken forward march of life.



* * *



By the time the mourning period ended, everyone in the neighborhood was talking about Sara’s new beau. Caught up in the optimism and the tumult, Sara allowed herself to doubt what she had seen. But when she witnessed the light a second time, during a dinner at her home where both Nathan and Esther were present, she could no longer ignore the truth.

How could she possibly explain it to Nathan? At best, she would sound as if she did not love him, and at worst, she would sound like some kind of a witch. Even among her own family members, Sara could not disclose what she had seen. There was only one person she could tell.

Sara knocked on the door of Rabbi Sheinkopf’s home when she knew he was already at the synagogue. Esther was scrubbing a spotless floor, and Sara could smell the vegetable soup simmering on the rabbi’s stove. Esther’s hair was in her eyes again, but her cheeks were smooth and her smile was welcoming. She was pretty, Sara thought, but it was difficult to notice because she was constantly in motion. If only she would stand still long enough, her beauty would be easier to see.

“I have something to talk to you about,” Sara said. “Did Hindel ever tell you how she met Aaron?”

Esther nodded. “She told me that they met on the steamship. I always thought it was a wonderful story.”

“It is,” Sara agreed. “Did she mention that I was the one to introduce them?”

A whisper of pink crept into Esther’s cheeks as if she was embarrassed to have known this fact. “Yes,” she said. “Hindel told me.” Esther lowered her head and looked away. “She said that one day, perhaps, you might find someone for me as well.”

“That’s exactly why I wanted to see you.”

Sara could not think of where to begin, how much to say, or what to hold back. Esther was horrified at first. Nathan and Sara loved each other! Esther could never do such a thing! How could she ever come between them? What would Sara’s family think?

In the end, the only way to convince Esther was to tell her everything. Sara described what she had seen on the steamship; she described what she had seen between Jacob Tunchel and Miryam. She recounted the story of the grocer’s son and her teacher, of Ida Raskin and the dentist, of countless others. She told Esther there were dozens of men and women who had never once suspected her intervention.

“But what if, this time, you are wrong?” Esther asked.

Sara didn’t know whether to laugh or to weep. “I’m not wrong,” she said. “If I thought there was a chance that I could be, believe me, I wouldn’t have come to you.”

“I don’t understand what you want me to do. I couldn’t bring myself to look at Nathan now, let alone encourage him.”

“There is nothing to do yet,” Sara said. “After a suitable time has passed, we will have to come up with a plan. There will be no reason for him to return to this neighborhood, so we will have to think of something, some way for you to cross paths. We will need to be patient.”

Esther frowned. “I know that I haven’t been blessed with your gift, but even with my eyes, I can see that you love him. I’m sorry, Sara, but I don’t understand. How can you bear to give him up?”

There was no way for Sara to properly answer. Yes, she loved Nathan. Perhaps he loved her, too. But whatever brightness burned between them, it was not brilliant enough to last. She wondered if she would ever find someone whose love she would not have to doubt. Would her gift ever reveal the man she was meant for with enough certainty to stop her searching in corners for connections between him and someone else? She had always been grateful for her calling, but now she understood the havoc it could wreak. Was this the price she would have to pay—to never be secure in a love of her own?

She would not say all of that to Esther. She would not say it to anyone, ever. And so, in order to satisfy the question, Sara shrugged her shoulders and pretended not to care. “I care for him,” she admitted, but with a show of nonchalance. “But not like that. It’s only a little bit of affection—barely a drop.”