Sometimes, I have to believe in angels.
Two years ago, when a friend faced the prospect of losing her dog, I tried to help.
Leo, an 80-pound chow mix, would cuddle with you if he knew you, but he’d attacked other dogs and scared a few people. At an animal-control hearing, Leo lost his license, which meant exile for him and a broken heart for my friend.
Enter Shauntrell, whom I found after a frantic Google search.
As a volunteer with Northern California Sled Dog Rescue, Shauntrell always has a pack of malamutes and huskies at her heels. Even though Leo wasn’t a sled dog, once I told her the story, she wanted to help. The next day, I drove out to meet her.
Shauntrell lives in Dixon, a small town on I-80 southwest of Sacramento. It’s open country, with only the rumble of the Union Pacific line to trouble the quiet.
I liked Shauntrell immediately. Pretty, warm, hospitable and hungry to help others, she offered to take Leo temporarily, even though I could tell she’d already taken on too many dogs.
Fortunately, my friend found a way to keep Leo. But I never forgot Shauntrell’s offer, and we stayed in touch.
I soon learned the source of her selfless nature. Shauntrell is a fundamentalist Christian who gets no greater pleasure than spending all day Sunday in church.
Shauntrell’s mission in life is to praise God, love her family and do good in the world. A typical Facebook status update of hers would read: “Today I will smile, I will laugh and I will do my job to my best ability. I will also praise you Lord through it all.”
Via e-mail, I told her I was Jewish, that I wrote for the local Jewish newspaper. She was intrigued. One time she ended a note to me quoting a Psalm (King James version, of course). I sent her a Hebrew transliteration of the same passage.
She wrote back that she wept when reciting the Hebrew words out loud.
Her interest in all things Jewish grew over time. Last year, Shauntrell and her husband started holding garage sales, selling everything not nailed down to finance a trip to Israel. She started ending e-mails to me with “todah” and “l’hitraot.” I kicked in $50 to her trip fund.
Finally, in April, Shaun-trell and her husband made it to the Holy Land. They kept to a Christian-oriented itinerary, visiting the Sea of Galilee (where the Christian Bible says Jesus walked on water), retracing the Stations of the Cross in the Old City and standing under the slanted dome light of the Church of the Holy Sepulcher.
Israel rocked her to the core, and transformed her into an ardent Judeophile.
I followed her trip on Facebook. First update: “I’m home in Jerusalem.” Later: “I will never be the same; thank you, Abba.” And after returning: “Is it wrong I can’t stop crying and don’t know why … or could it be I was home and now I’m lost.”
I know how it feels to fall in love with Israel. To have helped Shauntrell experience that, especially after she proved so willing to help the stranger –– human and canine –– brought me joy.
Theologically and politically, Shauntrell and I likely don’t agree on much. But I learned through my friendship with her that those things don’t matter. Her most recent note to me spoke of “the heart of a Jewish boy who befriended a Christian girl and loved a nation together.”
It’s easy to give in to the petty divisions we create for ourselves, and God knows I do so often enough. Historically, Jews and Christians have had their problems. But Shauntrell is my angel of humanity, a living reminder that we have more in common than we may think.
Shauntrell promised to shlep into San Francisco on June 6 for Israel in the Gardens. I can’t wait to see her there. When I do, I’ll give her a hug and say, “Shalom, chaverah.”
She’ll know what I mean.
Dan Pine can be reached at [email protected].