Wow, wow, and wow.

I'm stunned. Yechida, thank you for the piece from R' Shamshon Rephael Hirsh! I also like that you/he mention an important point - which is that sensuality isn't evil, it just needs to be focused for the right purposes, in the right context. Which is what we're doing here.

And 7up - I really don't know what to say. That is truly incredible. I vote that you should try writing song lyrics, and lend some depth to the jewish songwriting world!

i'm gonna just parrot SB
wow...
to both of you, mom and yechida

thank you silentbattle

it took me a while to internalize this teaching

and 7UP

may you hijack very often and for a very long time

letakain must be your student

these poems are very deep and very inspiring  

and I am grateful that you are willing to share it with us

Counting on the fingers

Albom’s book page 234 (final piece from this book. His other books,2 fiction and 1 non-fiction are highly recommended)

It was summer and we were sitting in his office. I asked him why he thinks he became a rabbi.

He counted on his fingers

Number one, I always liked people

Number two, I love gentleness

Number three, I have patience

Number four, I love teaching

Number five, I am determined in my faith

Number six, it connects me to my past

Number seven-and lastly-it allows me to fulfill the message of our tradition;to live good,to do good,and to be blessed

So Albom says “I didn’t hear God in there”

The Reb smiles.

“God was there before number one

lol, that was great yechida

Deep Yechida deep. thanks for all your beautiful posts, again.

thank you Imtrying and habib

and the next one by R Kook ztl is extremely important

Realms of Darkness by R' Kook

When you feel humiliated, empty, lacking all spiritual strength, when you fall and stumble, realize that a great light has been prepared for you.

All of your imperfections and all the damage that you have caused-this-worldly, spiritual, things you did or didn't do throughout your life-all stand before you. Everything you ever did wrong testifies against you.

You are stunned. You feel great anguish, and from the midst of that anguish you experience regret.

Then you rise up and repent. You rise up from the depth of the abyss to the elevated pinnacle, from impurity to purity, from blackness to a great light.

As you emerge and rise, you have to pass through realms of darkness that overwhelm you and eclipse you.

But be aware that "God is merciful and gracious," that "even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I shall not fear evil, for God is with me."

When you cry out to God from the midst of the confusions of the abyss, your voice will be heard.

When you call out for the light of knowledge, it will shine on you.

Wisdom and kindness will support you and crown you. You will swiftly return to the citadel, filled with wisdom, joy and strength.

Orot Hakodesh III, p. 252

Small part of Aish Article "Fun vs Joy"

please read the whole article if you have the chance

Running Nowhere


I recall a dismal phone conversation that I once had with a husband whose wife had grown distanced. This couple had everything one could wish for. Beautiful children, a home out of Architectural Digest, and a supposedly fairy tale marriage filled with travel to exotic locations. The wife decided that she “just wasn’t happy” and informed me that she would be telling her husband that she wanted a divorce.
"Our definition of happiness was warped and now we’re paying the price.”
“Do you know what I feel most sorry about?” her anguished husband asked when I told him that there was nothing left for me to do. “We’ve spent years trying so hard to have fun, seeking out pleasure and excitement, but we’ve neglected our souls. Our definition of happiness was warped and now we’re paying the price.”
He was right. Our society’s definition of happiness is distorted. We are given these wonderful families, precious children to raise and love, but we make a huge mistake. Instead of appreciating all that we have, we keep an eye on that which we feel we’re missing. We grow miserable and dissatisfied.
We find ourselves constantly running, chasing the newest and the latest, hoping that finally we will be happy. We run to the mall, we run to the gym, we run to the latest hot spot to vacation. We run everywhere but home. We believe that each new pleasure will rectify our unhappiness.
Somehow, though, we still can’t seem to find real happiness. We are left with this gnawing discontent, an emptiness that never seems to fill. Sadly, we fail to realize that happiness lies within.

Chuck C.: "What you are looking for, your'e looking with; what you found came here with you."

We've got Hashem with us, period.
When He told the Avos not to fear, "for I am with you," He was not informing them of anything. They always knew he was with them. Rather, Hashem was speaking it out to them to make the relationship work for them. Just like a nisayon: Hashem "tests" us just to bring out the greatness that is already within us. Hashem was letting them actually hear his love and attachment to them, even though it was already there, to make it the kind of awareness that works.
Plenty of us have faith in G-d. But that is not enough for addicts. We need a faith that works. And that usually seems to take time, work, pain, and patience. Unless you've got nevu'ah...but it seems that getting nevu'ah requires those things, too.
Darn.

work and pain is one thing

alot of patience is another.

it's not as easy as people think

we have to be patient with ourselves

and have patience as we heal.

God values the baby steps

valuing every single inch

even very far away from the finish line.

because that inch was a very very good day.

that is all He needs from me right now

The Present

Imagine there is a Bank that credits your account every morning with $86,400.

However, it carries over no balance from day to day and every night the bank deletes whatever part of the balance you failed to use during the day.

What would you do? Draw out every cent, of course!

Each of us has such a bank. Its name is TIME.

Every morning, it credits you with 86,400 seconds. Every night it writes off, as lost, whatever of this you have failed to invest to good purpose. It carries over no balance and it allows no overdraft.

Each day it opens a new account for you. Each night it burns the remains of the day. If you fail to use the day's deposits, the loss is yours.

There is no going back. There is no drawing against the "tomorrow." You must live in the present solely on today's deposits. So invest it wisely each day to get from it the utmost in health, happiness, and success!

The clock is running. Make the most of today.

To realise the value of ONE YEAR, ask a student who failed the HSC.

To realise the value of ONE MONTH, ask a mother who gave birth to a premature baby.

To realise the value of ONE WEEK, ask the editor of a weekly newspaper.

To realise the value of ONE HOUR, ask the lovers who are waiting to meet.

To realise the value of ONE MINUTE, ask a person who missed the train.

To realise the value of ONE-SECOND, ask a person who just avoided an accident.

To realise the value of ONE MILLISECOND, ask the person who won a medal in the Olympics.

Treasure every moment that you have! And treasure it more because you shared it with someone special, special enough to spend your time.

And remember that TIME waits for no one.

Friends are very rare jewels indeed.

They make you smile and encourage you to succeed. They lend an ear, they share a word of praise, and they always want to open their heart to us.

Show your friends how much you care. Send this to everyone you consider a FRIEND. If it comes back to you from someone else, then you'll know you have a CIRCLE OF FRIENDS.

Yesterday, is history.
Tomorrow, is a mystery.
Today is a gift.
That's why it's called,
The present

Author Unknown

(yechida changed the word “gods” to “God”)


Journey of a Lifetime–Jason Westlake

I can’t see it, feel it, hear it, or taste it
I don’t see the light, don’t know the reward
I only hear rumors and catch fleeting glimpses
They tell me it’s worth it and to keep going
I search through the night, wading through the muck
Struggling, wondering, falling, and stumbling forward
Feeling my way around in the darkness
I climb higher and higher out of the pit
What’s this for? Why am I here? Where do I go?
Gravity pulls me back down to the ground
I wish I could rest but a moment right here
I scarcely remember the dream or the prize
But a calm voice I can faintly make out
As the sound resonates from deep in my soul
In a crescendo with every step upward
Like an avalanche gaining momentum
I don’t know what it is, but it I desire
I know that it’s worth it because it I can feel
I come across others with the same goal
We lift, encourage, and inspire each other
We grow stronger, helping each other in need
We move faster with greater agility
We cry, we laugh, we struggle, we fight
We feel pain, and we experience defeat
We’ve been beaten down on numerous attempts
We’ve lost our way and been discouraged at times
With broken legs and sprained ankles not a few
Nothing can stop us, a greater force is with us
How much longer ‘til the end, we know not
Only that we will inevitably arrive
We round the corner and open one last door
We stop, frozen with awe, amazed at the view
As we see our greatest dreams have come true
The reward, the glory, the victory is ours
Heroes and leaders we have now become
For it was the journey that gave us the prize
The journey brought out God in us
Carving and sculpting us out from the marble
Our potential unleashed and fully realized
We know the joy and have tasted its sweetness
We look back to see others walking the path
It’s now our duty to be their guiding lights
So we can enjoy the reward together
The prize from the journey being who we’ve become

phew, i just got to catch up between doughnuts! awesome posts as always!
i especially liked the one about the present! after all, don't we all love chanukah gifts?

MOM! since when do you write?! that was fabulous! i really liked how you combined 3 comparisons together to form a lesson- that's pretty sophisticated writing there! wow! keep it coming!

the "get enough sleep" of the daily e-mail is extremely important,

not just for physical health

It helps immensely with the fight against the yetzer horah.

unwind in a healthy way 2 hours before bedtime

even if you feel you have other obligations

you first have an obligation to yourself.