‘œYorum,Yorum, gingey, gingey, where did you get your red, red hair!’.’  Giorah’™s words stung me’  like bees as I ran from him. I felt terrible. If Giorah didn’™t tease me about my hair it would be my name. How much bad luck can a kid take? If only I had a couple of wishes! That would be really great. When my Mum and Dad gave me my name, didn’™t they know Yoram to the boys means a nerd ‘“ a bum?
When my teaser was far enough behind, I began walking. I didn’™t pay attention to an old man sitting on a low stone wall. When I was opposite, his: ‘œHello, young man. Why so sad?,’ surprised me.’  I looked around to see if he meant somebody else but there wasn’™t anyone except the two of us.
I looked at him. He was as thin as a stick and looked a hundred years old. His long, hair and beard were white and’  tangled. I think he never, ever used a comb. But his smile was friendly.
‘œThey tease me,’ I said.
‘œWho?’
‘œThe kids at school’  – especially Giorah.’
‘œCalls you red-head I suppose?’
‘œYeah, and that’™s not all, my name’™s Yoram too. It’™s terrible and so they poke fun at me.’
‘œI’™ll call you Yory. You’™d like that better wouldn’™t you? Would you be happy if your hair colour had just a small change?’  Would you like that?’
‘œSure, but Ma wont let me dye it. She says that it will change by itself when I get older. Will it?’
‘œSure, Yory ‘“ but it’™s hard to wait so long, isn’™t it? But I could change the colour a little without using dye!’
I looked at the old man. He can’™t mean it. He must be kidding. But I decided to listen to more so I said, ‘œSure I’™d like that. How could you do it?’
‘œMost of my life I was called Kossy the Magician. I can do many tricks. For many years I made many people laugh. I worked in circuses and parties. You should have been there, when I did a really great one at the circus. I worked with an elephant called Jumbo. He was used to it and liked doing it.
‘œJumbo stood on an upside-down tub, his legs close together. My magic would raise the tub off the ground about waist high. Then, without ropes or anything the tub would move Jumbo here and there. Finally it would go to the other side of the ring and let him down there.’  The magic made the crowd go wild.
‘œThat time something went wrong. The magic was too strong. Imagine my surprise, when Jumbo began to fly high and over the crowd. I became afraid. I was sure he would panic and fall. Can you imagine how terrible that would be?
I was really scared. But Jumbo seemed to enjoy the ride. I concentrated with all my might and managed to bring him down safely in the ring. Of course the crowd shouted and screamed’  and said I was the greatest. Then I remembered. When I was small my dad used to do such a high fly with Jumbo. And, you know, they say an elephant never forgets? My dad was a really great magician. I never got to be as good as he was.

Jumbo began to fly high and over the crowd

I was afraid to try that magic again. I worked with many circuses but when too many things began to go wrong I had to quit. Sometimes magic doesn’™t work exactly as it’™s meant to. But changing the colour of your hair is easy. Much easier than making an elephant fly,’ and the old man winked.
Anyway if anything does go wrong, I can always make your hair as it was ‘“ that’™s really easy.
I thought this was all crazy; the old man’™s story and talk of magic and changing the colour of my hair.’  I thought maybe I was dreaming and even bit my finger to see if I was awake. But I wasn’™t dreaming. It was all real!
Then I began to think that maybe this crazy meeting was an answer to my prayers? I looked at Kossy.. He seemed okay. But I could not be sure. What if his magic goes wrong on me? Maybe I’™d be sorry for ever and ever! Thoughts ran in my head. But suddenly I said. ‘œOkay Kossy.’  Yeah. I’™ll try.’
The old man got off the wall and stood. Again a surprise, he was hardly taller than me. ‘œWhere do you live?’. I was full of curious about Kossy.
‘œDo you know the little hut near the corner? It’™s like an old wooden box but it’™s good enough for me. A man who liked me at the circus said I could live there as long as I want.’
‘œAnd you, Yory? Where do you live?’
‘œTel-Hai – near Dizengoff. I live very close.’
When we came to the hut the door opened even before Kossy touched it. He waited. I went in and he followed.
It took me a little while to get used to the dark. The place was dusty and smelled like a second-hand bookstore . There was a whole wall of them – up to the ceiling. The window was so dusty, hardly any light got in. It was just like Kossy said, an old wooden box. Kossy’™s house was about the same size as my room!
‘œKossy, do you want me to clean the window? It’™s so dark!’
‘œNo, Yory ‘“ but thanks anyway. I like the dark. It saves me a curtain and also from peeping Toms. I don’™t like nosey people, do you?’
I thought Kossy must be the weirdest man alive. A bed stood in the corner no bigger than mine. Kossy’™s blankets piled in the middle made me wish that Ma wouldn’™t make me keep my bed always tidy. Next to a small table were two chairs. They were so crooked I thought that some magic must keep someone from falling from them. Maybe Kossy runs his house by magic.
‘œHow do you make magic?’ I asked.
Kossy bent and pulled out from behind his bed a small stick. ‘œThis helps,’ he said., It looked a very ordinary stick that I could find anywhere. He’™s just bluffing ‘“ it’™s all a bluff! But I’™m not afraid. ‘œThat doesn’™t look special?’œ I said.
‘œI used to have a very special one with real silver ends but Jumbo stepped on it and broke it. Anyway, it’™s not the stick that does the magic, it just helps me think better. I can do magic with anything. I once used a basket, but that time the magic went really funny…’ Kossy began laughing. He laughed so hard that his head shook. It wobbled so badly I thought he might hurt himself!
‘œI would have liked to see that magic very much,’ I said to help him stop.
‘œWhat was so funny?’ I asked.’
‘œIt was at a birthday party of five year old kids. The basket was full of sweets. In this magic the sweets used to fly from the basket, one by one to each of the kids. The children loved it.
But that time the magic went a bit wrong. The sweets flew up high and then fell on the kids like rain – everywhere!
At first the kids were shocked but soon found that these were chocolate balls! They scrambled to collect as many as they could and the chocolate got smeared on everything! On faces, hands and clothes ‘“ even on the carpet! It was a wonderful mess! The kids laughed and thought it was great but not their mums and dads.’
Kossy told the story in such a funny way, I began laughing with him too. I wished I had seen some of Kossy’™s crazy tricks.
Then, looking at me with tears still in his eyes he said, ‘œchanging the colour of your hair, Yory will be easy. But I will need your help. You must think hard about the colour otherwise the magic might go wrong. Do you want’  to try?’
This brought me back to earth with a bump. This is crazy I thought. It’™s now or never! Maybe I should just leave and go. Leave all this madness and just go home.
With so many things going wrong with Kossy’™s magics, I wasn’™t sure at all!. Should I risk it? Was it worth it? Kossy did say that I could always be a red-head again if anything went wrong. I was not sure – not even of the colour. I remembered Giorah. Then, as if someone else was speaking for me, I heard myself say, ‘œOkay, Kossy,’ and nodded.