Thinkingaboutme.org
9 years of Parasha articles.
THE ART OF MEANINGFULNESS
THE ART OF MEANINGFULNESS Parashat Behar Behukotay by Rabbi Yosef Farhi The wisest of men taught us that there is always a deeper meaning to things than the way we experience them on a superficial level. As King Solomon taught הַכֹּ֥ל הוֹלֵ֖ךְ אֶל־מָק֣וֹם אֶחָ֑ד הַכֹּל֙ הָיָ֣ה מִן־הֶֽעָפָ֔ר וְהַכֹּ֖ל שָׁ֥ב אֶל־הֶעָפָֽר: And the following passuk states מִ֣י יוֹדֵ֗עַ…
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THE ART OF ALTRUISM
THE ART OF ALTRUISM Parashat Emor by Rabbi Yosef Farhi Rashi points out that right in the middle of the Torah’s detailed discussion of all the Jewish yearly Holidays and their respective laws and sacrifices, there is a law that seems to be unrelated to the subject. After speaking of the cutting of the barley…
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THE CHOICE OF EXTRAORDINARINESS
THE CHOICE OF EXTRAORDINARINESS Parashat Aharei Mot/ Kedoshim by Rabbi Yosef Farhi There are five choices that we can make that will decide if and how much we are productive, especially when bouncing back during times of crisis and challenge. Choice no. 1: Act on the Important; Don’t react to the urgent. Choice no. 2:…
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THE ART OF THIRD PERSON PERSPECTIVE
THE ART OF THIRD PERSON PERSPECTIVE Parashat Tazriah Metzorah by Rabbi Yosef Farhi In the ability to adapt to changes and bounce back from challenges, there are two lessons from this week’s Parashiot. One from Parashat Tazriah- the art of self-reflection. The other from Parashat Metzorah- the art of hope and reframing luck. The two…
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THE ART OF ADAPTING TO CHANGE
THE ART OF ADAPTING TO CHANGE Parashat Shemini by Rabbi Yosef Farhi We all like Seder, order. But life is not Seder. It never was and never will be. When life has no Seder, we are forced to think hard and make an internal Seder. I.e., we are forced to answer the hardest questions in…
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THE ART OF TRUSTING
click BESHALACH 2020 for download THE ART OF TRUSTING Parashat Beshalach I know that this sounds ridiculous, but did you ever return G-d a favor? He did, does, and will always do, so much good for you and your family. Or is it just impossible to do G-d a favor, for He does not lack anything…
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THE ART OF EMOTIONAL RESILIENCE
click Bo 2020 for download THE ART OF EMOTIONAL RESILIENCE Parashat Bo Martin Seligman, the author of Learned Optimism and founder of modern-day Positive Psychology, writes that successful people are usually positive people. Positive people are masters at the three Ps. They believe that 1. Problems are not permanent. 2. Problems are not worse than they…
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THE ART OF EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION
click vaera 2020 for download THE ART OF EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION Parashat Vaera Effective communication is the key to success in so many life areas. How do we improve our communication skills? Where does one start? An excellent place to begin is with the Meshech Hochma in this week’s Parasha. Moshe claimed to G-d that there…
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THE ART OF EMPATHY
click shemot 2020 for download THE ART OF EMPATHY Parashat Shemot וּמֹשֶׁ֗ה הָיָ֥ה רֹעֶ֛ה אֶת־צֹ֛אן יִתְר֥וֹ חֹתְנ֖וֹ כֹּהֵ֣ן מִדְיָ֑ן וַיִּנְהַ֤ג אֶת־הַצֹּאן֙ אַחַ֣ר הַמִּדְבָּ֔ר וַיָּבֹ֛א אֶל־הַ֥ר הָאֱלֹהִ֖ים חֹרֵֽבָה: And Moshe was shepherding his father in law Yitro’s flock, and he led the flock after the desert, and he came to the mountain of G-d in Horeb. (Shemot 3;1)…
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HOW TO SOLVE EVERYONE’S PROBLEMS
Click vayechi 2020 for dowload HOW TO SOLVE EVERYONE’S PROBLEMS Parashat Vayechi Unfortunately, we can’t solve most of the problems of most of the people in our lives. Unfortunately, there is only a certain amount of charity we can give, only a certain amount of extra time and energy we have. Unfortunately, there is only…
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THE ART OF BEING HONEST WITH YOURSELF
Click for SUPER expanded vayeshev / Chanuka download THE ART OF BEING HONEST WITH YOURSELF Parashat Vayeshev Honesty is a huge part of self- improvement. To be honest with yourself means to examine your personal narrative. Subconsciously, people tell themselves stories about themselves. Some stories are true, and some are not. Our stories came from different places,…
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THE ART OF RESILIENCE
Click Vayishlach for download THE ART OF RESILIENCE Parashat Vayishlach People that can keep their calm have what psychologists call resilience, or an ability to cope with problems and setbacks. A loss of a job, a breakup of a relationship, health issues, difficulties raising children… We can’t prevent such things from happening, but we can improve the…
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HOW TO CONTROL YOUR EGO
Click Vayetze 2019 for download HOW TO CONTROL YOUR EGO Parashat Vayetze A Jew once said to his Rebbe, “I want happiness”. The Rebbe said, First remove “I”, that’s Ego. And then remove “Want”, that’s Desire. See, now all your left with is Happiness! Once, someone sent the Lubavitcher Rebbe a letter. “I have no…
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LOVE WHAT IS
click toldot 2019 final for download LOVE WHAT IS Parashat Toldot The Chafetz Chaim once asked a certain Jew how he was doing. The man said, “It would not hurt if life were a bit better.” The Chafetz Chaim responded, “How could you possibly know that “it would not hurt” if life would be better?…
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Kindness – Inside Out
Click chaye sara 2019 for download Kindness – Inside Out Parashat Chaye Sarah R’ Chaim Vital, student of Arizal was quoted saying something that I hope I will never forget. There are people who perform acts of kindness with everyone, but with their own families, they do not do kindness. They think to themselves that…
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SAVE THE MOMENT
Click vayera 2019 expanded for download SAVE THE MOMENT Parashat Vayera In 1974, Cat’s in the Cradle was the hit song of the day, a song that hit the cords of the hearts of many dads. Here are the lyrics – a real tear jerker. If you know the words, sing them again, so you…
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UNDERSTOOD. RESPECTED. LIKED.
click lech lecha 2019 for download UNDERSTOOD. RESPECTED. LIKED. Parashat Lech Lecha R Nissim Karelitz Zt”l was once asked the reason why some marriages are not blessed with tranquility. Is it a budgeting issue? A cultural issue? Technology? A deficiency in communication skills? Conflict of interests, beliefs personalities, levels of religion? Or, maybe all of the above?…
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LEAD LIKE A LION
click noach 2019 for download LEAD LIKE A LION Parashat Noach Alexander the Great once said, I am not afraid of an army of lions led by a sheep; I am afraid of an army of sheep led by a lion. What are the qualities of lion-leadership, and what type of leaders are “sheep” leaders? A lion-hearted…
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A LIFE AT FULL THROTTLE
Click yom kippur 2019 for download A LIFE AT FULL THROTTLE Yom Kippur Are you going through life at the speed limits you set for yourself? Or are you at full throttle? This question has been going through my head over the last two months. And I am so grateful that it has. This is the “charged”…
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A HAPPY ELUL
click ki tavo 2019 for download A HAPPY ELUL Teshuva is a happy thing. If you are doing Teshuva and you are not happy, you are not really cashing in on all your benefits. Happiness is what changes the evil decree of sin. Happiness is what brings upon you G-d’s mercy. This is found in Rabbenu Bachye…
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A CALM ELUL
click ki tetze 2019 for download A CALM ELUL It has been said that one who says Psalm 27 every day in Elul is promised that he will live his full amount of allotted years and days in a good way, and he will overpower all the prosecuting angels against him, and will merit in judgement.(Siddur Arizal)…
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TWO WAYS TO TESHUVA
Click shoftim 2019 final to download TWO WAYS TO TESHUVA Parashat Shoftim I was looking for the switch that could take me – overnight – from summer break mode directly into Elul self-perfection mode. I found it. Yishai Ribo’s new song, called Seder HaAvodah, brought me to Elul mode. The music, enchanting. The words, tear jerking. ואם…
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YOU ARE WHAT YOU SAY
Click Mattot- Masei 2019 for download YOU ARE WHAT YOU SAY Mattot Your speech defines who you are. Like it or not. The Shlah Hakodosh wrote, the very saying Be’ezrat Hashem, Bsiyata Dishmaya, (with the help of Heaven,) before everything that you do, has in it the power to help you, and to make you successful,…
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WHY ME?
click pinhas – mattot 2019 for download WHY ME? Parashat Pinhas In his book, Learned Optimism, Martin Selegman, the forefather of modern-day positive psychology, breaks down positive thinking to 3 P’s. Permanent – Is the problem/offense/issue at hand one that is permanent? Pervasive – Is the problem/offense/issue at hand perceived as bigger than it really is? Personal…
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THE POWER OF DESIRE
click balak pinhas to download THE POWER OF DESIRE Parashat Balak My life’s passion is helping kids from all over the world, of all ages, to improve their reading skills in Hebrew and English. Helping them to focus, to enrich their comprehension, increase speed and to acquire a burning thirst for learning. One of the biggest problems…
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THE POWER OF THE JEWISH NATION
click hukat balak 2019 to download THE POWER OF THE JEWISH NATION Hukat The commentators deal with the puzzling question of why Moshe lost his chance to bring the Jews into Israel, just because he hit a rock. The Torah says, יַ֚עַן לֹא־הֶאֱמַנְתֶּ֣ם בִּ֔י לְהַ֨קְדִּישֵׁ֔נִי לְעֵינֵ֖י בְּנֵ֣י יִשְׂרָאֵ֑ל לָכֵ֗ן לֹ֤א תָבִ֙יאוּ֙ אֶת־הַקָּהָ֣ל הַזֶּ֔ה אֶל־הָאָ֖רֶץ אֲשֶׁר־נָתַ֥תִּי…
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CONDUCTOR LEADERSHIP
Click Behaalotcha- Shelah 2019 to download CONDUCTOR LEADERSHIP Parashat Behaalotcha My mother sent me a speech given by a music conductor. This is what the conductor told his audience. “At the age of 45, I had already been conducting for more than 20 years, and suddenly, I was struck by this fascinating insight: the conductor of…
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The Self Help Addict
Click Naso- post Shavuot 2019 for download The Self Help Addict Parashat Naso There is an obvious question regarding Birkat Kohanim. If G-d wants to bless the people, why does He need to do so through the kohanim? Why does He need messengers? How could it be that a Gadol HaDor who is a Yisrael needs to…
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YETZER HARA LEMONADE
click Kabalat HaTorah 2019 to download YETZER HARA LEMONADE Erev Shavuot One of the greatest gifts G-d gave you in life is your Yetzer Hara. The Midrash teaches us, :”וַיַּרְא אֱלֹקים אֶת כָּל אֲשֶׁר עָשָׂה וְהִנֵּה טוֹב מְאֹד”- And G-d saw all that He made, and it was very good. ‘וְהִנֵּה טוֹב’- זה ‘היצר הטוב’. ‘וְהִנֵּה טוֹב…
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A CONNECTION TO G-D
click sefirat haomer 2019 for download A CONNECTION TO G-D One of the amazing things that happened to me in Miami was a conversation I had on the way to the airport with the Uber driver, an African American. “Are you a Rabbi?” I try to be. I try to help people get closer to their…
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BIRDFATE
BIRDFATE At the end of a thirteen-year cave life, R’ Shimon Bar Yochai sat at the entrance to what had been his “home”. He saw a hunter who was setting up a bird trap. The hunter scattered some seeds, so that birds would be attracted to the trap, going for the bait. R Shimon noticed…
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THE WORLD’S GREATEST ARTIST
click emor 2019 to download THE WORLD’S GREATEST ARTIST Sefirat Haomer I heard the most beautiful idea from my neighbor, Dan Gordon, one of the best landscapers in Jerusalem and a Shemitta specialist. This idea is an idea that one can meditate on for hours. Chana praised G-d, saying: אֵין קָדוֹשׁ כַּה’ כִּי אֵין בִּלְתֶּךָ, וְאֵין צוּר…
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MIRROR, MIRROR ON THE WALL
click sefirat haomer 2019 for download MIRROR, MIRROR ON THE WALL Sefirat Haomer King Solomon’s famous life mantra seems a little strange. כַּ֭מַּיִם הַפָּנִ֣ים לַפָּנִ֑ים כֵּ֤ן לֵֽב־הָ֝אָדָ֗ם לָאָדָֽם As water reflects one’s face, so too, the heart of one man reflects the heart of another. (Mishlei 27; 19) If someone is not being nice to…
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THE POWER TO IGNORE
Click vayakhel 2019 to download THE POWER TO IGNORE Parashat Vayakhel King Solomon taught מְתוּקָה֙ שְׁנַ֣ת הָעֹבֵ֔ד אִם־מְעַ֥ט וְאִם־הַרְבֵּ֖ה יֹאכֵ֑ל וְהַשָּׂבָע֙ לֶֽעָשִׁ֔יר אֵינֶ֛נּוּ מַנִּ֥יחַֽ ל֖וֹ לִישֽׁוֹן׃ The sleep of a laboring man is sweet, whether he eat little or much; but the satiety of the rich will not let him sleep. A poor man does not lose…
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