Two J-Connected celebrities announced retirement plans this week, ending long and successful careers. Barbara Walters, veteran TV anchorwoman, and David Beckham, famed soccer midfielder, each expressed thanks and satisfaction to fans and colleagues as they bid their respective careers goodbye. Each announcement was a symbolic ending of a job that could have been mundane and repetitive, but which they each performed with renewed vivaciousness every time they stepped on set or field. This week’s parsha, …More

Two brothers--one rich and childless, the other poor but a parent of many--once struck a deal. The wealthy man, who desperately wanted a child, would pay a million dollars in exchange for one of his brother's children. A day before the exchange was to take place, the poor brother suddenly canceled the agreement. "But why, what changed?" asked the rich brother. "Until now, I always thought I had ten children," began the poor man, "but I've suddenly come to the realization that, in truth, I only have one--only …More

A story is told of a man who lived his life on a constant quest for the absolute truth. During his frequent travels, he one day receives word that the "world of truth" exists in a certain cave. Upon entering the cave, he sees an old sage and thousands of lit candles. "What are all these candles for?" asks the man. "Each candle is for a person in the universe," replies the sage, "and if a candle is dwindling it signifies that the individual's life is coming to a close." "Where is mine?" asks the man. The sage …More

A man was walking along the beach when he noticed a boy picking up starfish that had washed ashore, and throwing them back into the ocean. "What are you doing?" asked the man. "The surf is up and the tide is going out," replied the boy, "if I don't throw them back, they'll die." "Son," said the man, "don't you realize there are hundreds of starfish out there? You can't make a difference!" After listening politely, the boy bent down, picked up another starfish, and threw it back into the ocean. Smiling at the …More

A group of Russian peasants are sitting in a bar, discussing how much they admire the Czar and what they would offer him to express the extent of their love. "I'd give all the gold and silver I own!" says Vladimir. "I'd give him my entire estate!" exclaims Boris. "Hey, what about those beautiful horses you ride?" asks Vladimir. "My horses?" responds Boris, "Nah...I wouldn't give those - why, the Czar deserves much more!" How often do you feel like Boris - brilliantly inspired to take action - but when theory …More

A young man was praying intently, excessively wrapped up in his own spiritual orb. His friend, wanting to teach him a lesson, gave him a little pinch, but surprisingly, the man did not react at all. A second pinch, and still no response, so for the third attempt, the friend went all out, giving him such a slap that the man in prayer jumped up, completely startled. "Ah ha, so you feel it! Why are you pretending to be so spiritual?" he challenged his friend. "Oh but I didn't feel you the first two …More

Who's the boss? The husband opens the door to a traveling salesman. "Good afternoon—who is the master of the house?" asks the salesman. "Funny," says the husband, "my wife and I were just arguing about that!" How many times have you met someone who refused to hear about a diet because he or she didn't want to be told what and when to eat? We like to feel in charge, but the reality is that the food we eat is "the boss" in its own right, because it significantly affects our minds and our bodies. As with …More

A man observed his Jewish acquaintance reading a Nazi newspaper on a regular basis. "Why don't you read the Jewish paper?" he asked him, incredulous. "The Jewish newspapers!" the man exclaimed, "all they write about is how persecuted our nation is... how much we suffer! Reading the Nazi paper actually makes me feel good about who I am; we control the government, we're influential in society... why, we're practically taking over the entire world! Now that's what I want to hear about.” There's an old adage …More

During WWII, a young boy and an aged man find themselves side by side in a cattle car on the way to a concentration camp in war-torn Europe. It is frighteningly cold, and the old man asks the boy to help keep his frail body warm through the night. Morning arrives, and to their horror, the two discover that everyone in the car has frozen to death, leaving them as the sole survivors—the old man, because he was kept warm, the young boy, because he remained active. There are moments in life when we question …More

A girl fell in love with a man who regularly abused her. Her family and friends tried to convince her to leave him. "Look at his history," they said. "He's an abuser." The girl shook her head and said, "You just don't know him... He's really a good person... I love him." Clearly, "teenage love" does not determine who is Mr. or Mrs. Right. This story reminds me of a discussion I recently had, concerning the tendency of wealthy people to marry others of wealth or influence. Apparently, love doesn't just happen. …More

I’m watching a guy on his morning jog, puffing and sweating with his dog on a leash, running ahead of him. He seems like a typical jogger. Suddenly I hear the guy pleading with his dog: “Slow down! You’re going too fast!” The incident made me think about how we sometimes get so overwhelmed with the to-dos of life, that we–the “owners” of our lives–feel like we’re almost being led on a leash, instead of holding the reins. It gets difficult to focus; it’s …More

It was early one morning sometime before Yom Kippur when Reb Shmuel Munkes, a well-known Hasid, saw a peasant praying fervently in the shul. Reb Shmuel approached the peasant, who wasn’t usually seen in synagogue at this early hour, and asked him what had brought him to shul so early. "Rabbi," he said, "Yom Kippur is approaching. Everything is at stake. I'm praying that my cow should continue to give milk and my chickens should continue to lay eggs!" The rabbi turned to the peasant and exclaimed, …More