How I Found My Shidduch During Quarantine – Or Perhaps Because of It

By Chaya Tzivia Beiguelman Azubel for COLlive.com

I’ve just graduated from my second year as a student at Machon L’Yahadus. It was the best time of my life. I grew so much in my journey in Yiddishkeit, Chassidishkeit and also as a person. I came to Machon L’Yahadus when I was 18 years old, right after High School, and I left as an adult. 

I come from a beautiful traditional family. We were raised with a lot of love, patience, and my mother always emphasized the importance of being Jewish. I studied my whole life in a traditional Jewish school. From the time I was a child, I used to go to Shul with my family every Friday night and on the High Holidays.

At Machon L’Yahadus, I got to know girls from everywhere; we became sisters. When the Rebbe came to visit the dorm one year on Pesach, he told Mrs. Gansburg, the dorm mother, “Thank you for raising my daughters.” Living in the dorm, I truly felt the zechus of being one of the Rebbe’s daughters! The teachers are always available to speak, even after you leave Machon L’Yahadus, and the Crown Heights community (including the teachers) always open their homes for Shabbos and holidays. 

When I was in my second year at Machon L’Yahadus, right after Tishrei, my Mashpia asked me about my plans for the future. I said I thought that after completing my second year of seminary, I would stay in Crown Heights and hopefully get married. But I wouldn’t do anything without asking the Rebbe. So I wrote a letter to the Rebbe, and the answer I opened to in the Igros said that the Rebbe was very happy that I was home spreading Chassidus and Yiddishkeit.

I wondered if this answer meant that I should buy a ticket to Brazil right away since my shlichus was at home. But my Mashpia told me I should continue as planned and complete my studies. After the following Tishrei, I would return home to Brazil.

Since I intended to stay at the Machon L’Yahadus dorm for Pesach – where we have a full, hands-on Pesach preparation experience – I decided to visit home for two weeks before Purim. Two days before my trip, I wrote to the Rebbe that since I was instructed to go back home after seminary, I was starting to bring some of my things now. 

It was very hard for me to start bringing my things home. Even though I knew it was the right thing to do, I would miss 770, Machon L’Yahadus, the girls, the teachers, etc. When I wrote to the Rebbe about these feelings, I opened up the Igros to a letter where the Rebbe was speaking about the person having a shlichus in South America to bring youth to Yeshivos. The Rebbe noted that it was good that the person was still in touch with friends from before, and was involved in bringing them closer to Yiddishkeit. 

I spent two very pleasant weeks visiting with family and friends in Brazil. The day before my flight back to New York, the quarantine started! Rabbi Shloma Majeski, principal of Machon L’Yahadus, called me saying that I should not travel back to Crown Heights. I was very sad but I knew that everything is from Hashem so it had to be for a good reason. 

I made Pesach for my family, using the knowledge I had gained in Machon L’Yahadus and with the help of the Shluchim in Brazil. I guided the Seder at home, and cooked for Shabbos and Yom Tov. I wasn’t feeling the same excitement and joy as I did the previous year in the dorm. It was a very hard job for one person to do alone; in the Machon L’Yahadus dorm we did everything for Pesach together and it was such a fun atmosphere. Little did I know that this was an important preparation for what was still to come!

A few days after Pesach, a woman I did not know, texted me asking if I was looking for a shidduch. I realized that a friend had already suggested this bochur, Aharon Besso, when I was in New York, but I didn’t feel ready at that time to be involved in shidduchim. A couple of days later, while I was waiting for reference checking, another shadchanis called me with the exact same idea.

The dates were quite a challenge logistically during this quarantine season. Since Aharon lives in Rio de Janeiro, we talked on Skype at first. Things progressed to the point where it became clear that we needed to meet each other in person. Aharon came to S. Paulo and we met a number of times. Baruch Hashem, things went smoothly. Eventually, we decided to write to the Rebbe to ask for a bracha to get engaged. We both have the goal to build a Binyan Adei Ad based on Torah, Mitzvos and Chassidus!  

When I got engaged, I received phone calls from my Machon L’Yahadus sisters from all over the world. This proved to me that we are truly sisters no matter where we are. We are the Rebbe’s daughters. What a zechus!