Listening to Life's Messages

BH I ask myself, why am I davenning now?  Cuz I’m a Jew  Cuz it’s a mitzvah  A mitzvah means Hashem’s will It’s Hashem’s will that I daven to Him Why? Cuz He wants me to connect with Him Why? Cuz He wants a relationship with me. Seriously? Hashem wants a relationship with me He cares that much to have my attention? He cares that much what I think about Him? My love means so much to Him? My praise means so much to Him? My thanks means so much to Him? My faith and trust in Him that He is the only one in control of everything and the only source of blessing, means that much to Him Apparently YES How flattered should I be feeling  How honored should I be feeling  This is why He created me  Because He wants to be in a relationship with me  And He wants me to choose to be in a relationship with Him Now we are still dating, Soon we will be married  Now is the time to prepare for that intimacy by getting to know Him better By getting closer  By just ...

On 12 Tammuz this past summer, I was checking out in a store in Boro Park, when the sales lady asked me, "did you come in for gimmel Tammuz?" I told her that I came for a few things - (my brother in law just got married BH,) but of course for that too. But I sensed she was trying to show me that she too knows the Rebbe and chabad.. So I asked her, "do you go to the ohel?" "Of course!" She said. "today and tomorrow are actually really good days to go to the ohel, 12/13 Tammuz.." I mentioned. "it's always a good time to go," she answered. "I usually go on Thursdays cuz it's my day off." I thought she must have more to say, so I asked, "Did you have any special encounters?" Her: "No." Me: "well the truth is that it's always a special encounter.." She lowered her voice. "Ok, I'll tell you." "When my oldest son was ready to get married, he met a g...

13   Tammuz . The great holiday of Redemption of the Previous Rebbe from Soviet prison. I stood at the Rebbe's Ohel. The universal address of comfort, of blessing, of strength, of inspiration.  I looked down at the hundreds of torn up letters that people left behind here today - People who poured out their hearts and souls in this holiest place. People who let go of all their worries here,  Who tore up their past concerns,  Who left behind their heavy weights, Who returned home lighter than before, As the Rebbe's broad shoulders carry it all. I read my pan too. I asked, "How can I take this truth that I feel at the Rebbe's ohel, with me, when I go back down to the real world?" I asked for Bracha and Hatzlacha. And more... As always, I left the ohel feeling uplifted, feeling that great sense of joy that comes from being in the Rebbes holy presence. I thought, if I lived here in NY, I think I would want to come here e...

Does anyone care  How you cover your hair Which hat you choose to wear When in truth we all share The same soul The same goal  The same role  The same whole? Do our differences take space  Are we ever in a race  Is there not enough place For each unique face? Well not anymore  From now on it's for sure  There will be no more war We have found our common core  We have prayed we have sung We have danced with the same drum We have felt that we are one Yes Geulah has begun  Yes we have risen above  Yes we have chosen love  "K'ish Echad B'Lev Echad" We stand ready for Geulah!

I was so lucky to get to spend time with my husband's Zaidy, Yehoshua Wilansky, while he gave me driving lessons in the months after our wedding. Almost every time, he would ask me to drive to a senior citizen home in Williamsburg where he would visit an old neighbor who had nobody else in the world. The neighbor didn't remember Zaidy anymore, but that didn't stop Zaidy from remembering him.. At the end of every visit, he would tell me, "It's so sad! All of these people here were once young, strong, and successful... I hope this never happens to me!" And I would say "Chas vshalom, it will never happen to you!" After the terrible car accident, I told myself  that I better hurry up and pass my driving test before he gets better enough to ask me about it... But Zaidy, while I still never passed my driving test, I know that what you really want to see now is if I remember all the other lessons that you taught me - to see if I am passing the REAL test...

Which part of you really counts?  Which part of you matters most? Which part of you expresses your core? Which part of you, is YOU? You are not your wisdom or your knowledge.  You are not your creativity or your big ideas.  You are not your talents or your capabilities. You are not your job or your accomplishments. You are not your bank account or your house. You are not your interests or your hobbies. You are not your body or your clothing. You are not your family or your status.  You are not your personality or your preferences. That's not YOU. That's not what counts.  That's not what matters most. That's not what defines your essence. That's not what remains forever. Who are YOU. You are your middos. Your character. Your goodness. You are your kindness. Your love. Your generosity. You are your compassion. Your empathy. Your caring. You are your humility. Your modesty. Your selflessness. You are your fear of Heaven. Your self control. Your integrity. This is w...

One of my biggest challenges is choosing between all the million wonderful things that I need and want to do.   It's not easy trying to figure out who and what to say yes to, who and what to say no to...   And what to do first, what to do second... and what to push off indefinitely. But as I read today's Mitzvah of the day, I was reminded of just how much the right order of priorities matters. The mitzvah is that it's forbidden to switch around the order of how we give our donations. Instead, we need to follow the specific order of the Torah - First separating gifts of our first fruits to be given to the Priests in Jerusalem, then separating 1/50th of whatever is left for the Priests, then 1/10th of whatever is left for the Levites, and finally 1/10th of whatever is left, to be eaten by the owner in Jerusalem. If this order was not followed, and one separated the later tithe before an earlier one, even though he was doing a good thing, he has actually transgressed t...