I'm probably the last person in the world who should be writing this, but since when has that ever stopped me from doing anything?
Tonight is the second say of Rosh chodesh, alef Elul, (A quick shout out ... Happy anniversary to Shauly and Zahava!) A time for introspection. My good friend Zeldy a'h used to tell me about how when she was younger, you could feel when Elul had arrived. Everything and everyone just knew it. This has always intrigued me, and I never had a chance to find out exactly what she meant. Or I forgot. 😢
One of my friends on My Fitness Pal had a great status about us using this month to make better choices for ourselves, both physically and spiritually. Ones that may not give us instant gratification, but in the long run, will be better for us.
Whoa! That's a really, really heavy thought! I think actually, it's brilliant. The hardest part is figuring out how to implement this!!!
For me, I'm impulsive. I have a big, fat mouth that often works faster than ny brain. Which tends to get me into trouble. A lot. Not cool, I know. At least I'm humble enough to know when I need to apologize. Most of the time I manage to actually do it, although, not always.
So here it is, Rosh Chodesh Elul, and yes Zeldy, I feel it. This year, everything feels different already. I've got a lot of work cut out for me, and I have 40 days to do it.
Join me on the journey? Can't change the world until we change ourselves.
Sunday, August 16, 2015
Friday, August 14, 2015
Hashem pays for Shabbos and Yom Tov
We've all heard it before ... what you spend on Shabbos and Yom Tiff does not count in your yearly income.
I once read a story in Meoras Hashabbos that a certain rabbi (forgive me; his name slipped my mind) used to take his kids to the store on Eruv Shabbos, and let them pick out whatever candies and treats they wanted. He would throw up his hands and tell them, "Take whatever you want kids! It's all free!"
Over the years, I have tried very hard to remember to say, "l'kavod shabbos kodesh" when I go grocery shopping for shabbos food. This week is a special shabbos. It's both Shabbos AND Rosh Chodesh Elul. I really wanted to do something special for this shabbos, and decided to get some flowers. Martins has lovely arrangements for a very reasonable price. When I got there, there were several arrangements I saw, and had a real hard time choosing. Finally, after a lot of deliberations, I picked these --
I once read a story in Meoras Hashabbos that a certain rabbi (forgive me; his name slipped my mind) used to take his kids to the store on Eruv Shabbos, and let them pick out whatever candies and treats they wanted. He would throw up his hands and tell them, "Take whatever you want kids! It's all free!"
Over the years, I have tried very hard to remember to say, "l'kavod shabbos kodesh" when I go grocery shopping for shabbos food. This week is a special shabbos. It's both Shabbos AND Rosh Chodesh Elul. I really wanted to do something special for this shabbos, and decided to get some flowers. Martins has lovely arrangements for a very reasonable price. When I got there, there were several arrangements I saw, and had a real hard time choosing. Finally, after a lot of deliberations, I picked these --
As I went to put them in the cart, a thought struck me. I bought flowers a few weeks ago for Shabbos Chazon. (I had figured it was a hard shabbos leading right into Tisha B'Av, so that flowers would brighten it up.) I was thinking my husband may not be too happy with the purchase. (He's very practical; I'm the impulsive spend-thrift.) Then I remember that from time to time we get rebate checks for little, odd amounts. I know that what you get for shabbos, doesn't really come from our account. So I figured, I'll take the flowers and Hashem will send us some checks to pay for them.
Fast forward several hours... My husband comes home work. (He didn't go into the dining room.) He comes into the kitchen with the mail in his hand. Guess what he was holding? Yup! A rebate check. I screamed, "I bet it's for $16.47!!!" Then I told him the whole story of the flowers. Well, he opens it, and ... it was only for $11 something. BUT ... he had another rebate check in his hand as well. YUP!!! It was for $5 something, bringing the total to $17.46!!! I was jumping up and down. Hashem openly revealed what I have always believed.
And as that rabbi in Yerushalayim used to say, Buy whatever you want for Shabbos, because you aren't paying for it. Hakodesh Baruch Hu is!
Wishing every a wonderful, wonderful Shabbos, and may we celebrate it together with Moshiach and the Third Bais Hamikdash!
Wednesday, August 5, 2015
Is it ever right to steal & Illegals
When I still have Facebook, I asked a question.
Suppose a guy is caught stealing bread, milk, and eggs. Is that OK? He was doing it to feed his family.
A lot of people then argued with me. This is a hard one. He is stealing to feed his family. I asked if it makes a difference if he steals from Wal-Mart, or a small Mom & Pop store. Never really got a real answer on that.
Here is the thing. STEALING IS WRONG. It is wrong, wrong, wrong. It is AGAINST the law. Maybe a person has a good reason for steal, but we have laws in our society. The minute we start looking the other way for certain things, we have lost our morals. We have lost our community. We have anarchy.
I know it comes across as cold and heartless, but what difference does it make if someone steals a chicken to feed the family, or a cell phone? They need the chicken; they stole the cell phone because they felt they needed it.
As a society, we have totally lost our way. If a family hurting so badly they need to steal, then as a society, we have failed them. And this is the heart of the problem. WE ARE A COMMUNITY. Each area, whether it is a small Jewish "ghetto" (not said in a bad; my friends get the reference), or a large church ... whatever. We are joined by our values and morals. If each community were to take care of its own, then we wouldn't have this problem at all. The problem is, that the Democrats came in 40-50 years ago, and told the black communities that they don't need families. Have babies with lots of different fathers, and we will give you housing, food, we will take care of you. So that is what happened. Church attendance is down. In the areas where church attendance is still up, they are not as crime ridden as the areas where there is no church. The liberal progressives have progressed so far that they took G-d totally out of their lives. When you live a life devoid of G-d, then life has no value. How do you think that someone could actually kill another human being? They are not viewing that individual as a person! The humanity is getting lost.
What does this have to do with illegals? So many people in this country are willing to look the other way for a lot of reasons. Some say they are trying to make a better life for themselves. Some say that they do the jobs Americans don't want to do. Whatever the reason, the second they cross the border into America, they have already committed a crime. Does it matter why? No. Law is law is law. What part of ILLEGAL do people not get? Why is this so difficult to comprehend.
Think about this the next time you are walking to your car. How would you feel if someone stole your car in order to get to work every day?
Suppose a guy is caught stealing bread, milk, and eggs. Is that OK? He was doing it to feed his family.
A lot of people then argued with me. This is a hard one. He is stealing to feed his family. I asked if it makes a difference if he steals from Wal-Mart, or a small Mom & Pop store. Never really got a real answer on that.
Here is the thing. STEALING IS WRONG. It is wrong, wrong, wrong. It is AGAINST the law. Maybe a person has a good reason for steal, but we have laws in our society. The minute we start looking the other way for certain things, we have lost our morals. We have lost our community. We have anarchy.
I know it comes across as cold and heartless, but what difference does it make if someone steals a chicken to feed the family, or a cell phone? They need the chicken; they stole the cell phone because they felt they needed it.
As a society, we have totally lost our way. If a family hurting so badly they need to steal, then as a society, we have failed them. And this is the heart of the problem. WE ARE A COMMUNITY. Each area, whether it is a small Jewish "ghetto" (not said in a bad; my friends get the reference), or a large church ... whatever. We are joined by our values and morals. If each community were to take care of its own, then we wouldn't have this problem at all. The problem is, that the Democrats came in 40-50 years ago, and told the black communities that they don't need families. Have babies with lots of different fathers, and we will give you housing, food, we will take care of you. So that is what happened. Church attendance is down. In the areas where church attendance is still up, they are not as crime ridden as the areas where there is no church. The liberal progressives have progressed so far that they took G-d totally out of their lives. When you live a life devoid of G-d, then life has no value. How do you think that someone could actually kill another human being? They are not viewing that individual as a person! The humanity is getting lost.
What does this have to do with illegals? So many people in this country are willing to look the other way for a lot of reasons. Some say they are trying to make a better life for themselves. Some say that they do the jobs Americans don't want to do. Whatever the reason, the second they cross the border into America, they have already committed a crime. Does it matter why? No. Law is law is law. What part of ILLEGAL do people not get? Why is this so difficult to comprehend.
Think about this the next time you are walking to your car. How would you feel if someone stole your car in order to get to work every day?
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