Empathy
Is
The heart
Of
kindness

you are all beloved by Hashem

never think otherwise

even more than that

No matter what your past was like, God desires the personal interaction with you. He does listen. He does answer. You may not see it clearly right away. But if you look closely-you will see His responding to you.

Deep inside every human wants to connect with his Creator. Certainly a Yid. & God desires very much the personal relationship with you-no matter how flawed you may be or think you are.

Hope is the anecdote to despair. Keep that spark if hope alive. God , in our generation ,seems to want the mode of Hester Panim-He is hidden behind a veil

Nevertheless, if you search & yearn & look- & we call out to Him with sincerity-He WILL interact with you. you will see His guiding hand. Don't let the fact that we don't see open miracles deter or weaken you. The sea will not split for you nor will money fall from the sky nor will your marriage turn around in a 3 minute span. But somehow, somehow, even through the veil, you will cross that sea, you will receive money & your marriage will heal

The first thing is to connect with God & ask. Even if you feel there is a "shelo leshmah"- an ego-type motive-don't let that hold you back either. You tell God, true, perhaps some of my requests & desires have selfish aspects to it-but you also know that deep inside I want to be close to you- & I am calling you from that place.

So dear friends, don't get down, don't let life's problems overwhelm you. I know how life can be overwhelming sometimes. Sometimes we spin in circles & we don't see a way out of it. & I don't have the magic formula either. I don't have solutions to many problems in my life either. But I do see these glimmers of hope. from behind the veil, I see God reaching out to me. & Im not special in that regard. No. That is not so. Every Yid is special in that regard. God wants to hear from each one of you. & He want your interaction, He wants you to confide in Him & express both your pain & joy with Him.

Our generation is a very confusing & dark one. There is beauty in our generation too so many good things but the confusion & pain is great as well. We cant live without God helping us-in EVERY aspect in life. & perhaps that indeed is one of the lessons of our generation. We see & feel that we need God in our lives-on a VERY VERY PERSONAL BASIS.

He is our lifeline. He is who we can turn too. & He DOES respond. We may feel deep suffering, each one of us in our own way-but He is the Healer of that suffering. It wont disappear overnight. Some problems may stay. But FEELING HIM WITHIN OUR HEARTS will indeed sooth us & comfort us & reframe us & will indeed give up a spark of joy that will eventually radiate & bring great healing into our lives.

Sweet, thanks chaver.

Courage is being
Scared to death
-but saddling up
Anyway”
(John Wayne)

In Judaism
Courage is trusting God
Thinking, speaking, acting
As best as we can
In accordance to His wishes

Vulnerability
Is courage too
Pouring out our hearts to Him
Expressing our vulnerabilities & weaknesses
Asking Him to help us anyhow

It’s a courage
Not recognized in our society
Courage to face
Our vulnerability to Him
& to our fellow man
When that’s the right thing
To do

Often I cannot do a thing but just saddle up. Or as an SA mentor of mine would put it, "Suit up and show up."

And it is OK.

World looks “screwed up”
Yet we believe
Despite its dark veil
We envision
The corrected world
How every dark storm
That transpired upon this earth
Is somehow leading us
To its ultimate perfection
& its corrected state

Words of Love
Are so important

How much more so
The silence between the Words

Facial expression
Of the soft tenderness in the eyes
Kind gestures, compassionate thoughts
Flowing outward
Within the silence
Between the Words!!

Evening Prayer
Is my night light
Shedding a soft glow
Of comfort
Into my soul

Table
Laden with food
Is God telling me
Look at the beautiful gifts
I am sending you

The pleasant awakening
To the double song of trees
First listening to their own melody
As the winds passes through them
As well as the joyous melody of the
Birds residing in them
Creating
A beautiful harmony

Speech of Wisdom
Stringing words together
As one would do
When creating
An exotic pearl necklace

Silence
Is an Art
Not just “non-speech”

It
Can be
A harmful weapon
Or healing balm

It’s
Certainly not passive
Though it may seem so
On the surface

My introversion
Creates a perception
Of a solitary lone island
Amidst a great vast sea

Yet
My heart is full
With the inner currents
Of a powerful connection
To my people

So what am I?
Surrounded?
Or stranded?

Where am I?
In my heart?
Or head?

Do I make my soul a desert?
DO I see it as an oasis?
Am I full at my core?

Yechida, I presume
You understand what I'm asking
Please respond.

you are a soul
trying to find healthy expression
through the gifts of heart & mind

yes,because God chose for us
a human existence
where body & soul often conflict
& when the struggle is profoundly felt
the soul indeed feels as a desert
& sometimes as the oasis to run to
to quench our Godly thirst
with the sweet waters of what our soul
is truely connected to.

but even in this dark exile
& I mean our collective national exile
of thousands of years
as well as each of our individual exiles
of a thirsty & tired soul
in a world of darkness
we have that eternal gift
the flickering candle
that will endure
& never be extinguished
no matter how lost we may feel