Avi Korman felt like he was about to cry. He looked down. Dovi would never forgive him

Avi Korman wasn’t a fool. He appreciated that Sholom Wasser asked him to speak — it was a classy thing to do — but he knew his place. He was uncomfortable enough sitting at the head of the table, next to Sholom and Shuey Portman, but he’d promised Dovi that he wouldn’t sit with the boys.

There was a time that he imagined that he would be that cool father, the one whose teenage son would be okay with him hanging around when friends were over, but it turned out that there was no such thing. Even now, Dovi, sitting at the far end of the table, kept looking up to make sure his father was still far away. Avi didn’t mind. He was enjoying the singing and it was nice to see Dovi sitting in a comfortable little circle, eating, schmoozing and singing.

The boys were urging Shuey Portman to sing something alone, and Avi detected the wariness on Rabbi Wasser’s face, as if he wasn’t sure how far to let it go.

Shuey seemed ready to sing, but Halbfinger, who was playing keyboard, didn’t know the songs Shuey mentioned, which was embarrassing for everyone. Sholom Wasser used the pause to start speaking.

“Kodem kol, I have to thank Reb Avi,” he said. Avi straightened up and hoped his face hadn’t colored — that would embarrass Dovi who, Avi noticed, was getting slapped on the back and high-fived.

“I don’t think we ever had the zechus to have Reb Avi meet all of you, but the yeshivah, our heilege yeshivah, is really his, it’s his idea and his zechus.”

“Whew, nice,” Perensky started clapping, more to tease Dovi then anything else, Avi realized, but the rosh yeshivah didn’t appreciate it: he looked at Perensky and gently said, “Noach, you’re right to be makkir tov, but some things go beyond applause, this isn’t a camp skit.”

Avi felt bad and wondered why the rosh yeshivah was embarrassing the bochur, but Perensky took it in stride. “Yah, sorry, rebbi,” he said and waved, appearing thrilled at having been singled out, and Avi Korman realized that there was a lot he didn’t understand about running a yeshivah, the inner dynamics of the flow between the rosh yeshivah and the boys. He felt like an outsider, but it was a nice feeling. These boys were in good hands. He’d chosen well.

Rabbi Wasser continued, thanking Shuey Portman as well. “You boys know what Reb Yehoshua means to all of us, there’s nothing in yeshivah that he doesn’t make his problem. Ashreinu that we have him and ashrecha, Reb Yehoshua, that you get to be the one who makes sure that these tei’ere bochurim have what they need so that they can shteig.”

Avi Korman felt like he was about to cry. He looked down. Dovi would never forgive him.