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Showing posts from October, 2009

What Dreams We Are Made of

"It used to be the custom to plant a cedar tree when a boy was born; a pine tree was planted for a girl. When the two were to be married the huppa (canopy) was woven from branches of both trees." ~ Gittin 57a Dreams of the future. A child is born and we begin to imagine what will come. The first steps, learning to read, balancing on a bicycle, education, graduation, a wedding. As a young father I remember the dreams I drafted in my mind for my first born. Meticulously, I planned out his future. He would grow unafraid of bullies, confident of his own strengths; he would be a gifted student and choose between the many schools that courted him. It did not matter to me what profession he chose, I thought magnanimously, as long as he was a learned man. As I aged, I saw the many terrible things that happen to children. There is disease, dangerous mistakes, substance abuse, accidents, self-hate, maliciousness by peers (and sometimes by friends) a

Challenges

Three men were sitting in a hospital waiting room. Anxiously they waited for news of an impending delivery. A nurse came in and announced to the first, “Congratulations! You are the father of twins!”“Wow!” he shouted. “And I play for the Minnesota Twins!” A while later, a second nurse enters and says to the next man, “You are the proud father of triplets!” “Amazing!” he cried. “I work for 3M!” The third man then excitedly jumped out of his seat. “I am in trouble. I work for 7 Up.” Challenges in life are many. With every challenge comes an opportunity, though. The challenge is like a pod. Peel away the outer layer, which may take some effort, and inside you will find a new growth. Just for you.