Mazel Tov! very happy for you and for your lucky kallah. you add so much to the forum with your caring, articulate and positive comments. best wishes for a bayis ne'eman beyisroel ad meah ve'esrim.

Well, now that the cat is out of the pickle jar, let me give you a great big MAZAL TOV!!

That was fast work, tho, growing into freedom and getting engaged so soon.  Wow. based on past experience, i would guess it will be a VERY SHORT engagement, and that Mr. & Mrs. Battle will be married so soon we'll still be hung over from the vort l'chaims.

MAy you be zoche to build a bayis Neeman b'Yisroel, to have a home where the Shechina will constantly be found, thru the shalom and chesed you will do for eachother.

This GEVALDIG!! it's also FUN!!

That was nice. Really!

Thanks, guys. Amen, and I appreciate you all dropping by!

Just a quick note...I reminded myself today that women passing by are not something I want to look at, think about, etc - no matter what that little voice inside me says. I'm better off, happier, when I don't look.

Mazel Tov, reb silent, what a surprise i am truly happy for u, may u be happy the rest of ur life same as u were by the vort

silentbattle wrote on 09 Jun 2010 05:18:

Yep, there's now TWO more people counting on you to stay within the bounds of kedusha. Your kallah. And, her chosson -- who's sorta a different entity from who you were before the Vort. And it's just the two of you being handed the task of building the bayis. (Or, was that The Bayis. Hmmnn.)

I stand in awe, buddy. Mazel tov, noch a'moll.

ooh, SB
ive just seen the daily email of the administrator,
and directly opened your thread that i havnt opend for a long time actually since the hebrew forum, i wanna tell you that i so excited.
im so glad to hear about your engagement, so much.
im happy for you. love you.
big  MAZAL TOV!!!

Just wanted to say that I read the email and found your post to be so beautiful  and inspiring - you give me hope that it is possible to function normaly and get past the 'start line' to some lengthy sobriety. I must admit that I'm also quite jealous of you - you managed to to stay clean from the 1st attempt (since being part of GYE) and here I am after nearly 5 months still falling every so often. How did/do you do it? whats your secret? whatever it is that you're doing, keep up the good work!

Reb JIP - thank you!

Briut - very true, and may it continue to be so more and more as time goes on.

OneLife - great to hear from you again!

Reb Honest Mouse - thank you. My secret? Well, a good support network is an important start. Alongside that, there was a realization that I needed to get past my lust. After years of wallowing in the mud, and being very aware, deep down, of how awful it was...and then, in an instant, being forced to face it. I was able to see, with clarity, that change was something I wanted.

And ultimately, that's key - to be able to say that "being clean is something I want." And not just say it, but mean it. There will always be urges, but you need to remember what you want.

And help from hashem. A heck of a lot of it. Realizing that it's all hashem, also let's you see nisyonos as just that - a test, an opportunity to grow. And once you see it as that, it becomes a lot easier.

silentbattle wrote on 10 Jun 2010 03:40:


thats absolutely b-e-a-u-tiful. that brings a lot of clarity to this. i guess now, its just time to start thinkin' like that  :o. but thanks for the tip!!! 

silentbattle wrote on 10 Jun 2010 03:40:


Thanks sb - that is really helpful - i think you've maybe hit the nail on the head - i think i dont want it enough - i think lust is still too much a part of me i dont really know how to change  that but im working on it - i haven't given up - you've given me something else to think about. Also a major diffenrece may be that when my wife caught me i didnt know about this place i was mostly by myself and a therapist - i didnt have group support - but now that ive got group support - ive lost the' forced to face it' element that feels like rock bottom...

Congratulations Reb Silent. You are my hero. I am actually in the dating process so your story really reverberates with me. Maybe we can talk some time?

King Regards and Mazel Tov agian!
Zalmandovid

Mazal Tov! Mazal Tov! Mazal Tov!

It is so pleasing to hear such great news. Really, really terrific.

May you and your Kallah build a wonderful, beautiful home. A home of Torah, Avodas Hashem and Gemilus Chassadim. 

Thank you so much for sharing such terrific news. Mazal Tov!

Love reading your posts silent... your a real inspiration. just curious, R. Yeruchum has his own sefer on parsha? what is it called.

your getting me interested...

Hi everyone! Sorry, I've been a bit busy. Things are going well, but a bit hectic, and I don't have nearly s much free time as I used to. I'm going to drop in as I can, though.

Reb Confidence - hi there! Reb Yeruchum's sefer is called "daas torah" - it's black, with gold lettering, I think. I recommend it highly!

Honest Mouse - I was thinking about what I wrote, and I need to correct myself. It's not just realizing that "being clean is something that I want." Because sometimes, in moments of weakness, let's face it - we can feel certain that we don't want to be clean.

I think that as we slowly come to appreciate the fact that we want to be clean, the thing that keeps me going, no matter what, is that I need to stay clean.