Angelic Encounter on a Bus

There’s something about a bus in New York. On the subway, people rarely start up conversations with strangers.

I’ve gotten the occasional comment on the book I was reading, and schedule breakdowns set the whole car grumbling. I’ve even participated in a few spontaneous sing-alongs.

But on a bus you always feel welcome to chat. Last night I was riding the Number 7, reading, when the man behind me tapped my shoulder. He pointed to the business card I had taped inside my e-reader in case I ever lost it. “You work with angels?” he asked.

I turned around to tell him about our amazing magazine. “Have you ever met an angel?” he asked. I said I hadn’t—but his friend immediately pointed out that I might have met one without knowing it. “After all the stories I’ve heard you’d think I’d know that by now,” I admitted.

Long after I returned to my book, the two men continued to discuss the subject. They talked about angels, the 36 tzaddikim or righteous men, who do good work in secret, and what happens when you get to heaven.

I made sure to give them the address to our website before we reached their stop. There’s just something about a bus!

—Meg Belviso, Staff Editor