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ד"סב
Narratives
true Authentic, Realistic & Undeniable
Inspirations challenge: the
generation’s
and Real-Life Concerning our Volume
battle against
technology 157

My name is you,” he said. “How soon can you get here?”
Yonan Abra- I hadn’t counted on getting a personal invitation! Within
Call it Kosher ham and I live moments, I had packed up all my notes and models of the
in Gateshead, Kosher phone, and I was on my way. When I arrived at the
England. Be- office, I made quite a statement! About ten people were sit-
fore I relate ting at their desks and they all looked up when I walked in,
my fascinat- dressed as a true Kollel yungerman with my hat and jacket.
ing experience, allow me to issue a disclaimer. This story hap- The boss came out right away and greeted me with a big,
pened more than ten years ago, when texting was still being hearty handshake.
fought at the frontlines. Unfortunately, that battle has moved “Here, come into my office,” he said respectfully. “Would
into bigger and more daunting arenas since then. you like a drink of water?”
I wanted to bring Kosher cellphones to our community. He sat down and looked me straight in the eye. “Mr. Abra-
The way it works here is that a cellphone, in and of itself, can ham, when you said that you want a phone without text, I
be very expensive. You could walk into a phone store and buy said that it’s a great idea! I sell cellphones, and I see how dam-
one for a whopping £1,000 without a discount. However, if aging they are. They can be really problematic!”
you buy a contract for minutes and text, you get the phone for I hadn’t expected this kind of talk from the director of the
free (or at a very reduced price). It’s a package deal. cellphone company, but he was far from done.
There’s a very big cellphone company offering these con- “You know, I kept my son away from these addictive devic-
tracts, and I wanted to get them to provide kosher phones for es,” he continued. “But when he was just 14 years old, he ran
those who are interested. I called them and told the operator off and bought himself a phone. We don’t know where he is
who picked up the call that “I’m interested in bringing kosher nowadays. These phones are terrible! They’re so distracting!
phones to our community”. I was very shy and didn’t know When someone gets a text message, they run to the phone as
how to explain myself. I said, “Our rabbi decided, for educa- if it’s a 999 call! (In America, you call it a 9-1-1 emergency.)”
tional reasons, that it’s not good for our children to have I gave the boss the letter, the translation of Rav Wosner’s
phones with text…” psak, and he nodded along as he read it from start to finish.
After my fumbling explanation, I was met with complete He agreed with every word. At the conclusion of our produc-
silence. The person on the other end of the line didn’t re- tive meeting, the boss asked, “How are you getting home?”
spond. I shrugged. “I’ll call a taxi,” I said.
“We’ve got a whole system set up to make it work,” I con- “No, no,” was his vehement reply. “My son will drive you
tinued rambling, but I was still met with absolute silence. home.”
Finally, the man said, “Hold on, please. I’ll get right back to I went home in style, after the big boss who sells devices
you.” for a living actually agreed with every word our gedolim said
Two minutes later, he was back. “My boss wants to talk to on the topic!

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