Death and Letting Go
Death and Letting Go On Rosh HaShanah it is written, and on Yom Kippur it is determined, “Who shall live and who shall die.” In America we associate dying with sickness and disease, something [...]
Happiness = Goodness/How to Be Happy
HOW TO BE HAPPY Make the decision to be happy Make the best of whatever comes your way Understand that everything has a price Speak in positive ways Expect less and appreciate more Find ways to [...]
Three Aspects of Forgiveness
WHY IS FORGIVENESS SO HARD? In Sue Monk Kidd’s fabulous book, The Secret Life of Bees. The author writes that, “If God said in plain language, ‘I’m giving you a choice, forgive or [...]
David Rubenstein and Rabbi Milton Steinberg
My beloved husband, David Rubenstein, died on May 19, 2015. This is my second High Holidays without him. His death did not quite meet the standard we imagine when we say the words, “a ripe old [...]
God as Parent
We call on God as Avinu, Malkenu- our Father, our King, or, perhaps, our Parent, our Ruler. In her book, Nurture the Wow, Rabbi Danya Ruttenberg quotes William Thackeray, “Mother is the name for [...]
Spiritual Accounting and the Book of Life from an Accountant’s Perspective
My mom spent much of her career as a math teacher and as comptroller of a real estate company. My dad, alav hashalom, was an accountant. I have two brothers, Michael and Philip- both [...]
When the Book of Life is Closed
The new year is upon us. Our book of life lies open before us. We like to think that we have the luxury of time and many, many blank pages to fill in with fun and exciting moments as well as [...]