Tuesday, 5 January 2016
Sunday, 3 January 2016
When And Then
WHEN AND THEN
By unknown author
When I lose twenty pounds, then I’ll be happy. When I firm my up my abs, then I’ll plan that beach vacation When the holidays are over, then I’ll go back to the gym. When I can get back to my goal weight, then I’ll get involved in that group. Do you ever have thoughts like these? I sure do. Sometimes it feels overwhelming—the list of things I could or should do for my body to make my life “better” never ends. . . I should eat kale, not leftover candy. I could exercise more. I should switch to all organic cosmetic products . . . The list is never satisfied. So, I retreat to a world all my own. It’s a magical place that only exists in my head. I call it When-Then Land. Oh so much better than a Disney Park, When-Then Land is where my dreams come true. Within its borders, I’m a “better” version of myself—which somehow makes everything else in life instantly better, too. Plus, this idyllic future’s existence only depends on one person: Me. When I can just accomplish this thing, then my life will improve. Of course, this thinking doesn’t restrict itself to my body image. Other life issues can send me to When-Then Land too. For example: When my kids can potty themselves, then life will be easier. When I get a new job, then I’ll feel better about myself. When I can be a better wife, then I’ll have a great marriage. There’s nothing wrong with having goals, right? Yet, while When-Then Land appears to be a safe place, it’s filled with robbers—vandals that steal without us even realizing it. Allow me to explain. I stopped by When-Then Land earlier today. It was such a quick trip; I didn’t even have to pack snacks. The journey proceeded as follows: Thought: It’s time for us to get a new family photo taken. Second thought: “When I can lose a few pounds, then I will schedule the pictures.” Express train to When-Then Land now arriving on platform three. Should I choose to stay in When-Then Land, I’ll never schedule those family pictures. The resident thieves convince me that I’ll look better in the future—I’ll be happier then and like the pictures more. In doing so, they rob me of the chance to capture the memory of the way my family looks now, today. And that’s the biggest downside to living in When-Then Land. We miss out on the Here-Now. Our mental visits to When-Then Land keep us from living life to the full. In fact, the very existence of When-Then Landmakes enjoying the Here-Now even more difficult because of the pressure we put ourselves under to accomplish the goals that will take us to this ideal place. The burden of this is too big to carry. Trying to lose that weight, tone that body, be our “best” or just be “good enough” every day in a vain attempt to make the future “better” rates as difficult as carrying an overstuffed diaper bag while running a marathon. So how do we escape the temptation to dwell in When-Then Land? How do we take the pressure off and dwell in the Here-Now? Here are two places to start. • We often live in When-Then Land because we believe a lie. That is: life would be better, happier, more joyful, easier, or freer if we had that thing we want–be it a better body, a better hmarriage, or even more self-sufficient. The expectation that we’ll love our lives When-Then we reach those goals is looking for true salvation in a place we’ll never find it. • Be Thankful. Try to savor the Here-Now.The easiest way to do that is through practicing gratefulness. No, not every day here on earth will be awesome. Struggle and pain are real. But, having an attitude of thankfulness can change our perspective on the Here-Now and keep us from mentally drifting into believing a future here on earth will be anyway more magical. Write down what you are thankful for. Practice thanking Hashem for His great blessings when you pray. If you still feel yourself constantly drifting into that fantasyland, watch your media consumption—watching or reading a lot of fantasy or low-quality fiction can keep us trapped in When-Then Land, too.
So Well Said..... I Want A Boy Who Is Learning...(author unknown)
Subject: I want a boy who is LEARNING..........
I want a boy who is LEARNING....
Learning from his mistakes....
Learning from the mistakes of others....
Learning how to give without expecting anything in return....
Learning how to forgive others for their shortcomings....
Learning how to find true emes in a world brimming with sheker....
Learning how to take no for an answer....
Learning how to accept the will of Hashem when life gets stormy....
Learning how to utilize the tools Hashem gave him to become a better eved Hashem....
Learning how to find good in the frustrating nuances that happen throughout his day....
Learning how to grow and become A BETTER HIM.
I want a boy who is WORKING....
Working towards a greater goal....
Working on his middos a little bit more each day....
Working on strengthening his relationships with his rebbeim....
Working on improving his relationships with his family and friends....
Working on deepening his connection to Hakadosh Baruch Hu daily....
Working on giving life all he's got....
Working on thanking Hashem for all the little things in life....
Working on finding hashgachat Hashem in everything that happens to him throughout his day....
Working to overcome his natural negative tendencies....
Working on bringing Mashiach a little bit closer every day....
Working on growing and becoming A BETTER HIM.THIS is the person I want to marry.
Just learning? Only working?! Forget that idea! I want BOTH.
Friday, 1 January 2016
Thursday, 31 December 2015
The Nobel Prize. Its Origin And Profound Lesson!
The Nobel Prize came to be by chance – a twist of fate.
When Alfred Nobel's brother died, a newspaper mistakenly ran an obituary of Alfred himself, believing it was he who had died. Nobel was given a rare opportunity: to read his own obituary while alive. What he read horrified him. The newspaper described him as a man who had made it possible to kill more people more quickly than anyone else in history.
Upon reading it, Alfred Nobel realized two things, that this was how he was to be remembered, and that this was not how he wanted to be remembered. Shortly thereafter, he established the Nobel awards.
All too often we spend our time “sweating the small stuff,” and neglecting the things that really matter: the good we do, the love we give, the mitzvot we perform, the difference we make to other people’s lives. None of us knows how long we will live. Life is too short to waste. Every day is a gift from G-d and we should use it to the fullest: to celebrate life and be a blessing to others.
What do you want to be remembered for?
It's Not What We Always Think
A young couple moves into a new neighborhood. The next morning while they are eating breakfast, the young woman sees her neighbor hanging the wash outside. "That laundry is not very clean; she doesn't know how to wash correctly. Perhaps she needs better laundry soap." Her husband looks on, remaining silent. Every time her neighbor hangs her wash to dry, the young woman makes the same comments. A month later, the woman is surprised to see a nice clean wash on the line and says to her husband: "Look, she's finally learned how to wash correctly. I wonder who taught her this? " The husband replies, "I got up early this morning and cleaned our windows." And so it is with life... What we see when watching others depends on the clarity of the window through which we look
Judiasm 101%
In Crown Heights, there was a Jew, Yankel, who owned a bakery. He survived the camps. He once said, “You know why it is that I’m alive today? I was a kid, just a teenager at the time. We were on the train, in a boxcar, being taken to Auschwitz. Night came and it was freezing, deathly cold, in that boxcar. The Germans would leave the cars on the side of the tracks overnight, sometimes for days on end without any food, and of course, no blankets to keep us warm,” he said. “Sitting next to me was an older Jew – this beloved elderly Jew - from my hometown I recognized, but I had never seen him like this. He was shivering from head to toe, and looked terrible. So I wrapped my arms around him and began rubbing him, to warm him up. I rubbed his arms, his legs, his face, his neck. I begged him to hang on. All night long; I kept the man warm this way. I was tired, I was freezing cold myself, my fingers were numb, but I didn’t stop rubbing the heat on to this man’s body. Hours and hours went by this way. Finally, night passed, morning came, and the sun began to shine. There was some warmth in the cabin, and then I looked around the car to see some of the other Jews in the car. To my horror, all I could see were frozen bodies, and all I could hear was a deathly silence.
Nobody else in that cabin made it through the night – they died from the frost. Only two people survived: the old man and me… The old man survived because somebody kept him
warm; I survived because I was warming somebody else…”
Let me tell you the secret of Judaism. When you warm other people’s hearts, you remain warm yourself. When you seek to support, encourage and inspire others; then you discover support, encouragement and inspiration in your own life as well. That, my friends, is “Judaism 101”.
Nobody else in that cabin made it through the night – they died from the frost. Only two people survived: the old man and me… The old man survived because somebody kept him
warm; I survived because I was warming somebody else…”
Let me tell you the secret of Judaism. When you warm other people’s hearts, you remain warm yourself. When you seek to support, encourage and inspire others; then you discover support, encouragement and inspiration in your own life as well. That, my friends, is “Judaism 101”.
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