A Soulful Journey

A mother mouse was strolling along with her little Mikey when they were accosted by a  cat. The mother had the presence of mind to scream at the top of her voice, “Bow –wow!”  The cat darted for cover. “You see,” said the mother to Mikey, “ How important it is to know a second language.”  - Ezekiel Musleah

A Maggid arrives in a small town and as was custom a notice was placed on the wall of the synagogue that we would deliver a sermon that Shabbat.  Saturday morning came and the notice had been torn down.  He began his discourse with this story: “One way my wife went to visit a relative and I was left alone.  In the afternoon I went to the butcher and bought a tongue.  He instructed me how to prepare it, and since I was afraid I might forget that he said, I wrote the instructions down on a piece of paper and pasted it onto the tongue.  On the way home I was a attacked by a dog, that made a dash to grab the tongue. The mongrel only managed to seize the slip of paper.  So I said, “Dog, you can keep the paper, for as long as the tongue remains with me I will be able to help myself.” There is more than one way to deal with adversity.

Rabbi Samuel ben Isaac taught in the name of Rabbi Samuel ben Eleazar: ‘The seven “vanities” mentioned in Kohelet (Ecclesiastes) correspond to the seven worlds that a man beholds.  At age one, he’s like a king, seated in the litter while all hug and kiss him.  At two and three he is like a pig, sticking his hands in the gutters.  At ten he skips like a kid.  At twenty he is like a horse, adorning himself and seeking a wife. Having married, he is like an ass, that is, the beast of burden. When he has had children he becomes brazen like a dog, in order to bring in bread and food…

It's Erev Rosh Hashanah, and services are about to begin. The Synagogue is packed.  As the congregants are milling around, shmoozing before services, everyone seems to be distracted by a man who has brought with him a St. Bernard dog. "What chutzpah! " an elderly woman whispers aloud. Services begin, and everyone is fascinated by how well the dog behaves. The next morning, the man and his dog arrive early and promptly begin dovening. This time, the dog is wearing its own little tallis and yarmulke, and even appears, upon closer inspection, to be shuckling back and forth as the hazzan intones the prayers. The congregation is amazed. The week goes by and Kol Nidre arrives. The solemn worship service begins.  The man and his dog are back, and this time, just as the hazzan is about to begin the prayers, the dog stands up on its hind legs and howls "Ba-ROOOOOOOCH....!" more melodically than the best hazzan. After the service, everyone is clamoring to...