BARBARA'S TCHATZKAHS

This article rang true for me and how I have spent the last 6+ years of my life. I hope you get something from it also. - Barbara The Point of Return by Rosally Saltsman We can take the most insidious penchant, and nurture it into a positive and restorative force. Frank Abagnale, the "hero" of the book and movie Catch Me if You Can , was one of the most infamous contemporary outlaws. He successfully eluded the FBI, Interpol and the Justice system of 26 countries for five years, while amassing millions. After being caught and serving five years in prison, he was offered a chance to redeem himself by working for the U.S. government, uncovering the kind of schemes that he himself had perpetuated. He went from master criminal to crime prevention, protecting companies around the world from people like himself. Moreover, he paid back all the money he stole. Abagnale's success story is paralleled in the Talmud. Reish Lakish was a successful bandit known for his unusua...

Desires - the Engine of Change Rav Michael Laitman ReligionAndSpirituality.com Desires don't just pop out of the blue. They form unconsciously within us and surface only when they become something definable, such as " I want a pizza ." Before that, desires are either not felt, or at most, felt as general restlessness. We've all experienced that sense of wanting something but not quite knowing what it is. Well, it is a desire that has not yet ripened. Plato once said, " Necessity is the mother of invention ," and he was right. Similarly, Kabbalah teaches us that the only way we can learn anything is by first wanting to learn it. It's a very simple formula: When we want something, we do what it takes to get it. We make the time, muster the energy and develop the necessary skills. It turns out that the engine of change is desire. The way our desires evolve both defines and designs the entire history of humanity. As humankind's desires developed, they ur...

ROVE RESIGNED? HAPPY HAPPY JOY JOY! I tried so hard not to do the happy dance here. We still have Chimpy and Dead-Eye Dick to contend with, and Rove has left the Administration with a mess in Iraq and an economy that's tanking to contend with. They can credit him with his exploiting the Religious Right and engineering voting manipulation. Now let's see if he gets immunity from the investigations currently ongoing. But this kind of slime always pops up some place else. Some other political garbage scow is probably in his sights right now. He'll "put his feet up in September and think about that"? Wow, do I smell a big, stinkin'. remorseless Destructive Narcissist ? Why, yes I do. Someone follow him out with the Febreze, please. Still, allow me a few moments of happy dancing. While I dance, read on: Top White House aide Karl Rove to resign at end of month Top White House political adviser Karl Rove, who masterminded President George W. Bush's politica...

Kindness AND Truth Can someone please send this to Nancy Pelosi and all those politicos who still, after years of failed effects with Islamofascists - continue on with the Pollyanna-attitude of peace talks with Arabs? Any more trips could get her the Golden Calf booby-prize. - - - - - - - - - - PARSHAT SHEMINI The Pesach festival is over, as far as the matza is concerned. Yet we continue to move forward, striving to go beyond limitations [1], to discover new domains. The weekly Torah reading [2] presents us with two contrasting and complementary approaches to life, represented by two great figures: Moses and Aaron. From the beginning of the story about how the Jews went free from Egypt, both Moses and Aaron play a vital role in whatever is taking place. Usually they act in total unison, so that it is difficult to see any distinction between them. If one looks more closely, however, one sees that they represent very different qualities, both of which are necessary. The Sages tell u...