After the War of Independence, when relations with the Arabs of Tira stabilized, Arabs once again began to appear in Kfar Hess with donkeys and carts - selling vegetables.
My attitude, as a girl who had experienced the War of Independence, who had witnessed it and even taken a small part in the battle against Tira, was one of “respect him but suspect him.” One day, at midday, a large man in Arab dress - striped galabiya, kefiyah and agal on his head - knocked on our door. I was very frightened, but my father greeted him warmly as a familiar friend and said to me: “This is Yusuf, this is Yusuf.” And then he told me:
“When you were born in January 1934 and your mother returned home from the hospital in Tel Aviv to Kfar Hess, she traveled by public transportation - the bus that then went via Kfar Saba – Ramat Hakovesh – Tira – to Kfar Hess. Since it was January, the day was cold and rainy, and that particular day was especially stormy. The road was not really a road, full of puddles and mud. The bus sank near the village of Tira, got stuck in the mud, and could not continue.
Yusuf - an Arab resident of Tira - saw your mother with a 4–5 day old baby in her arms and invited her into his home until she could continue on her way to Kfar Hess.”
I do not remember, or do not know, how long I stayed in his house, but my mother mentioned that she sat in his home with me in her arms until she was able to continue her journey - and she recalled being received with warm and generous hospitality.
Before the war, my parents did meet Yusuf a few times, but I never paid it more attention than to any other encounter with Arabs who would come through the village, and my parents never told me the story - perhaps because they saw it as something natural.
Now, after the war, Yusuf came especially to see how we were doing.
I have no further details about him or his family. He is certainly no longer alive, and my parents too have passed away - it is a pity there is no one left to ask…
Our history is full of wars between Jews and Arabs, and the small, beautiful stories are getting lost. Yet there is no doubt that they shed light and testify that we are all human beings, and that it is possible to live together in good neighborly relations.
Told by: Ruti (Kafri) Kropnik