How about this...
Dear Shmulke,
As a fellow gye user, i am truly concerned when you said that you want to give up on life. Why? What's troubling you? We're all here to help, so please reach out to us. It may seem so dark now, but as little Annie would say, "the sun will come out, tomorrow".

I don't know if Shmulke will get back on tonight, but he is doin' better now.

just editing for my own reason

just editing for my own reason

This Shabbos is called Shabbos Shira because we read the Shiras HaYam/Song of the Sea. The Sfas Emes explains that song is much more than a tune or a poem. Song is nothing less than the physical expression of a spiritual essence. And since everything has a spiritual essence, song is not limited to humans. The entire Creation sings as we find in Perek Shirah.


Since song is the physical expression of a creation’s spiritual essence, song occurs only when the creation’s spiritual essence is revealed. Revealing the spiritual, then, is synonymous with song. And just as the roots of a tree lead directly to the tree, so too, does the spiritual aspect of a physical creation lead to that creation. There is a direct line between them. In fact, the Hebrew word for song – שִׁירָה, is related to the Hebrew for line – שׁוּרָה.


The Sfas Emes explains that the revelation of a creation’s spiritual essence is totally dependent upon man’s actions, words and thoughts. We have the ability to reveal the spiritual within the physical. We have the ability to cause the Creation to sing. Chazal teach us that when the nation sang at the sea, they caused the entire Creation to sing as well.


How can we reveal a creation’s spiritual essence? The Sfas Emes teaches that when we act with the understanding that every thing and every action has a spiritual component, the spiritual is revealed. God gave us the ability, by thinking the appropriate thoughts as we act, to reveal the spiritual in everything we do, even if we are doing mundane activities. What this means practically is that we can experience the spiritual in everything that we do by directing our thoughts towards it.


Believing that there is a spiritual component that parallels everything in the physical world, while necessary is not enough, though. We need to be able to tap into that belief during the course of our daily activities. This is easier said than done. We usually just run through our day without thinking. Obviously we think in order to solve problems and know what we want to do, but rare is the person who actually thinks about the whys and wherefores of his or her actions.


Thinking before acting, effectively preparing for it, is a straightforward, easy to implement approach to bringing out and experiencing the spiritual in all our activities. So, before any activity first think that this activity receives life and existence from God. It therefore contains a spiritual component, holiness. The ultimate purpose of Creation is God’s revelation. By thinking/preparing before acting, we reveal God, as it were, in a small but important way in all our daily activities. Acting in this way can cause amazing changes in our daily lives, how we relate to our activities, others and ourselves. Hatzlacha!

just editing for my own reason

the baal shem tov quotes:
why did god make the Jews stay in the dessert 40 years?
also why is it that if someone undertakes to make a drastic change at once, he will always fail?
because, god gives in general life and everything that anyone needs, every day
however, for special holy people he does not give them together with everyone, as it is not pure, he rather give them a very special package, with holy content. like the mana, and it is pure holy, and that provides for them their needs on a purely holy way
therefor when someone is not very pure, he gets the supply from god in general, and when he want to raise to a higher level, if he jumps too quickly, he deprives himself, from the general supply, and the special supply he cant get, as he is not yet on that level, so by force he falls back
thats why it must go slowly step by step "one day at a time"
so slowly he removes a bit of the general supply, and gets a bit of the special supply
thats why god kept them in the desert for 40 years and did not bring them into the land of israel at once

What do you have against the Sfas Emes?

just editing for my own reason

just editing for my own reason

just editing for my own reason

just editing for my own reason

sorry my head is doomed when it comes to figures

You can find some Gematria here

www.inner.org/parshah/exodus/yitro/united-before-mt-sinai.php

Shmeichel wrote:


Couldn't agree more; t'was "figures," especially finely shaped figures that messed me up to begin with.