A Soulful Journey

 It is said of Balzac that when he was on his deathbed, he inquired about the health and prosperity of the characters he invented. Our inner lives are what animates us.  Our inner lives also dictate what we see; how we perceive reality. Make your life one worth living.

A hunter went killing sparrows one cold day. His eyes grew teary as he went along.  One bird said to another, "Behold this man weeps." The other bird replied, "Turn your eyes from his tears.  Watch his hands."  - Arab proverb Moral: Judge a person's character by what they not, not what they say.

 A group of dealers in Warsaw to buy merchandise.  They all purchased their stock on credit.  Some bought more, others less, but they were very amiable.  On the way home, the men observed that one of their friends, who had purchased more than the rest of the group, acted very haughtily. "Why are you so proud?" one asked.  "Do you think that because you have bought more merchandise on credit than we did, that you are more important?  On the contrary, you are not only a greater debtor than we are and certainly have nothing to be conceited about.  But since you walk about with your nose in the air, it seems that you do not intent pay for what you bought." Moral: The rich and poor are alike.  God gave them what they possess on credit so that they might give a portion to tzedaka .  If the rich are proud, it is a signal that they will disregard their debt.

"Worry never robs tomorrow of its sorrow, it only saps today of its joy."  -Leo Buscaglia

Oliver Wendell Holmes, American author and physician, was absent-minded.  Once, when Holmes was asked for his ticket on a train, he could not locate it.  After searching all his pockets and his briefcase, he was unable to produce the ticket.  He became distraught.  The conductor, knowing Mr. Holmes and his reputation, said reassuringly, "Never mind, sir.  I am certain you will mail it in."  Holmes was not comforted.  "Mr. Conductor," he replied, "The question is not "Where is my ticket?" but "Where am I going?"   Thought: The conductor was wiling to give Mr. Holmes leeway.  Instead of berating him, making pay for another ticket or any number of negative responses, he chose to be kind.   Thought: The question Mr. Holmes asked should be one that we regularly ask ourselves, “Where are we headed and is this where we should be going?”  

 King Kelly played for the Boston team one hundred years ago.  He was a great slider.  When dying of pneumonia he fell from the stretcher carrying him.  His final words were, "This may be my last slide."  - Daniel Okrent and Steve Wulf No one and nothing lasts forever.

“We must always take sides. Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented.”  - Elie Wiesel

Once a powerful warlord gathered his massive army & attacked his neighbor, a small nearly defenseless country.  War commenced & against conventional wisdom, the tiny army threw back the bigger. How was this possible?  “All my warriors,” said the king “shared the same concerns, they knew their neighbors.  Their children depended on them.  The homes were close to each other.  They fought for themselves.  That was their secret.” When we fight for those  who  we love God gives us the  strength along with our inner determination.

A orphaned girl, shunted from one agency to another was found placing letters in secret crevices and corners.  A man, finding them, opened one after the next.  They all contained the same message, "To anyone who finds this letter, I LOVE YOU."

 "I'm sure this will not make me live any longer, but I know it's going to seem longer."  - Groucho Marx on dieting.

When we  read  the story of the Tower of Babel we consider the idea of unity versus independence.  There is one great lesson in working in a unified fashion.  " United we stand, divided we fall,”  said Abraham Lincoln. American statesman Benjamin Franklin put it, “ We must, indeed, all hang together, or, most assuredly, we shall all hang separately.”  

Rabbi Louis Finkelstein said,   " “When I pray, I speak to God, when I study, God speaks to me.”