Rabbi Eli is one of the most influential figures in my life. He took me for a few months under his care as a friend. It was amazing, I was in Shiur D and Rabbi Eli then entered the Gemara Shiurim of Rabbi Hananel Etrog as one of the students, in complete humility.
When I was already in the army I came to Rabbi Eli for a consultation a few days before the murder. Rabbi Eli did not feel well and lay in bed in the room.
Rabbi Eli listened to me and then he asked me, "Okay, so what do you want to do?" Sometimes the wisdom of the heart is far greater than the wisdom of the mind. '
This was the last sentence I heard from Rabbi Eli and that accompanies me to this day.
To me, it all boils down to him. The wisdom of the heart! Not that he lacked the wisdom of the mind, he was a great wise student, but in the end, after all the mental accounts there is something so internal and deep inside that he is much stronger than the mental accounts, an inner honesty that illuminates the spark in the eyes.
Rabbi Eli always had that spark in his eyes. He was always curious. Kind of naughty like that, he did not lose the child inside him.
That spark in his eyes, showed us the students that what he does is what he loves and that is who he really is. I as a student was very connected to it and it accompanies me to this day.
On Saturdays, when we came to Oneg Shabbat with Rabbi Eli, with the table that Rebbetzin Dina provided for equal refreshments, there was the picture on the wall in the living room (the painting painted by her uncle), Rabbi Eli, in his sense of humor, would tell us "You do not understand this Great, I always thought the picture was the other way around. '
This spark in Rabbi Eli's eyes, always goes with me and I hope I can pass this spark on.
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