WHAT HAPPENS IN HEAVEN

Here's for a beautiful thought someone passed on to me. 

I dreamed that I went to Heaven and an angel was showing me around. We
walked side-by-side inside a large workroom filled with angels. My
angel guide stopped in front of the first section and said, ' This is
the Receiving Section. Here, all petitions to Hashem said in prayer
are received. '

I looked around in this area, and it was terribly busy with so many
angels sorting out petitions written on voluminous paper sheets and
scraps from people all over the world.

Then we moved on down a long corridor until we reached the second section.

The angel then said to me, ' This is the Packaging and Delivery
Section. Here, the graces and blessings the people asked for are
processed and delivered to the living persons who asked for them. ' I
noticed again how busy it was there. There were many angels working
hard at that station, since so many blessings had been requested and
were being packaged for delivery to Earth..

Finally at the farthest end of the long corridor we stopped at the
door of a very small station. To my great surprise, only one angel was
seated there, idly doing nothing. 'This is the Acknowledgment
Section,' my angel friend quietly admitted to me. He seemed
embarrassed, 'How is it that there is no work going on here?' I asked.

'So sad,' the angel sighed. 'After people receive the blessings that
they asked for, very few send back acknowledgments.'

'How does one acknowledge Hashem's blessings?' I asked.

'Simple,' the angel answered. Just say, 'Thank you, Hashem.'

Reading this, I look up now and say, thank you Hashem for some very meaningful blessings I've been zoche to receive. 

Journey of the Angels

When Yaakov Avinu lay dreaming, "vayihi sulam mutzav artza", there was a ladder extending from below to the Heavens. "Vihinai malachai Elokim olim v'yordim bo." Malachei Hashareis were going up and down, up and down the ladder. What was causing these Heavenly angels to make this repeated journey from Heaven to earth, constantly climbing up or down?

Up in Heaven, there is an image of the potential of every individual. Up, beneath the Kisai HaKavod, lay a picture of Yaakov Avinu, a picture of the ultimate shleimas Yaakov Avinu could reach.

Down below, lay Yaakov, the Yaakov he had worked and struggled to become. As the malachim journeyed up the ladder, they saw the view of the ultimate potential Yaakov possessed. They journeyed down the ladder to see who Yaakov was, and caught glimpse of an image identical to the one in the Heaven above. Confused, the angels ran up and down, unable to distinguish between the Yaakov above and the Yaakov below.

Up in Heaven, beneath the Kisai HaKavod, there is an image of who I can become. There, nestled near the Celestial Throne, an image of my perfection, of the fulfillment of my maximum potential, can be seen.

Down below, I try to create an image of what that ultimate potential may be. I draw in my mind's eye the view of myself at my greatest level of shleimus. I create an image and strive to live it. I work toward it with the tefillah that b'sof chayai, the picture presented will match the picture I have become.

While I strive to define the potential picture, I'm limited by what I know. I formulate a vision based on the kochos I see in myself, based on the life situations I've been given. Yet G-d has an ever greater picture, a picture of my potential that far surpasses my wildest dreams.

When I stood at the age of 18 and imagined my life, I imagined one of working toward creating a beautiful marriage. I dreamed a picture of ultimate perfection, as I then thought it would be.

On High, in the place where a truer picture can be seen, a different picture has been painted. In that vision lays the image of a person far greater than one I ever imagined. I didn't know where six years of singlehood would take me. I didn't know how much greater pain would make me. I didn't imagine or dream that there could be an image beyond that which I had created.

Yet G-d, my Creator, created me with a potential I do not see and do not understand. He has given me circumstances that can help me grow beyond my wildest dreams.

Hashem, I never knew I could go so far. I never dreamed that the picture of my shleimus would reside in a sphere so far beyond the optimal level I demanded of myself. I didn't know you would design my life to give me challenges that would bring me to a far greater level of perfection than I ever imagined.

And Hashem, as I struggle with these challenges that I never imagined, give me the koach and guidance to emerge victor and to create a magnificent picture that matches that beautiful ultimate picture residing alongside You. When I come before You at the end of my life, let our two pictures match.

Battle Scars

Here's a beautiful thought that I refer to for my weekly thought. I've tried to accordingly apply it to my own life.

 

 

Sent to you by Tova Lane via Google Reader:

 

 

Battle Scars

via Mystery Woman by Mystery Woman on 11/22/10

"...And so Hakodosh Baruch Hu chooses a particular couple who will draw such a neshama down to this world. The neshama departs from the kisei hakovod and is immediately placed in an environment in which it is at home - an environment which is heavenly in nature, for an isha me'uberes carries within herself not only a child, but an entire Gan Eden as well.....

However, those special neshamos of which we have spoken above cannot bear to separate themselves from Gan Eden and sully themselves by entering this world of gashmius. And so they are spared from undergoing this discomfort and are returned to the lap of their Father in shamayim, having fulfilled their mission by leaving the heichal haneshamos, thus bringing Moshiach closer.

And what of the mother who had suffered, hoped, and in the end was so disappointed?

She is of flesh and blood and her feelings are understandable. However, in loftier moments - in moments when her wisdom can overcome her emotions - then she can free herself of her earthly thoughts and join in the elation enjoyed by her neshama. Then she will become possessed by a feeling of true joy - the joy of a wealthy man who takes reckoning of all his business endeavors and sees that the profits far outweigh the expenses.

She has merited to have as her guest a pure, holy neshama, accompanied by heavenly light, heavenly malachim and a heavenly Torah. Hakodosh Baruch Hu has chosen her guf to be the bais midrash of this neshama. And when this neshama leaves her, something of the kedusha that entered her will remain, and will not leave her for the rest of her life.

She was zoche to bring Moshiach's arrival closer by offering a sacrifice for this purpose. She is left with no mother's compensation; what she has endured has been for Moshiach's sake alone. She has served as a loyal soldier, not as a worker who awaits immediate payment. She has served with the loyalty of a soldier who is ready to suffer wounds in battle, if necessary, solely for the glory of the king.

Was it all worth it?" *


I lay on the stretcher, consumed by the ache in my heart. I don't want to be here. I barely register the needle in my arm, as I drift into blessed oblivion...as I embrace the blessed release of sleep...numbing the desperate ache inside me.

And when I am awakened, my baby is gone.

It was a normal, uneventful pregnancy, and we eagerly awaited the birth of our child.  We looked forward to our baby's upcoming arrival with joyful anticipation. We wondered whether it would be a boy or a girl..we speculated as to who it would look like...and we talked about who he/she would be named for.

And then, at a routine 16 week checkup, there was no heartbeat. My baby was no longer living.

I cried there in the doctor's office. I cried when I got home. And I cried the next morning at the hospital.

And then I was okay.

I got up, brushed myself off and moved on. I had other children to take care of. A miscarriage is pretty common, after all.

But I wasn't okay, really. Not inside. There was a very alive and real baby inside of me. A baby who died.

For a long time, I'd keep track of how old my baby would have been...should have been...and every time I'd see a child that age, it hurt.

Eventually, the hurt faded. It never disappeared, but it was replaced by a dull ache that settled somewhere deep inside me. I rarely thought about it. And when I did, it was just a fleeting thought. A tiny pinprick of pain.

But sometimes, during the time of year when we would have been celebrating another birthday, I think about it.

I wonder what this child would have been like. I wonder if he would have looked like any of his siblings. I wonder if he would have been quiet or outgoing. I wonder about how he would have changed the family dynamics. I wonder...but I'll never know.

But I do know that he would have had a place in my heart.

He would have been loved.


"Was it all worth it?

In painful moments when disappointment sets in and normal human feelings dominate one's mood, there may be one answer. However, when holiness breaks through, when the seichel of the neshama speaks and the joy of the Jewish soul bursts forth, then there is an answer of an entirely different nature. The answer is accompanied by the chimes of triumph, with the joy of the victor, with the deep-seated satisfaction of one who has earned something of immeasurable value...." *


I've suffered a loss. The ache never really goes away. There is no joy in that...for me. But there is acceptance. It's how it was meant to be.

And I've grown through it. I've learned the depth of sorrow. I've learned that life is incredibly precious, and that every moment shared together should be enjoyed. It's given me increased sensitivity.

There are no chimes of triumph. But I've brought Moshiach's arrival closer.

And that is a comfort.



*Excerpted from a letter written by R' Moshe Wolfson and translated by Rav Shimon Finkelman.
For a copy of the full letter, email me.

 

 

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Low Risk Ways to Speak Up in a Meeting

When I found myself working for a large organization, I had little experience making my voice heard in meetings. Previously, I had freelanced from my basement and was more comfortable talking 1:1 on the phone. But in meetings, I would want to ask questions (without sounding stupid), disagree (without sounding stupid or like a jerk), and offer opinions (without sounding stupid or seeming like I was trying to take over). See a theme?

Recently, Jodi Glickman covered this very subject — how to interject in a meeting — in the Harvard Business Review. Her advice lines up nicely with the tactics I’ve employed in my own meeting experiences.

Want to offer an opinion without necessarily getting your name attached to a bad idea? Glickman suggests these lead-in phrases:

• Have we thought about… (I do this one so often I might as well try to patent it.)
• Did anyone mention…
• Another option we might want to consider…

These are powerful phrases because you’re seen as contributing to the conversation without taking ownership of the idea you’re discussing.

Another common scenario: You are lost. It only takes a moment in a technical conversation to find you no longer know what the heck is going on. The good news is that it’s not as bad as you might think to admit you’re lost, as long as you’re up front about it. You can sit there in utter bafflement, or try one of these:

• Forgive me if I’m a bit behind the 8-call, but I’m confused about…
• This might be a dumb question, but… (I use this one perhaps a little too often.)
• I’m sure I’m supposed to know this, but…

Finally, suppose you disagree but you don’t want to sound like a jerk. Her suggestions:

• Be blunt: I respectfully disagree.
• Be cagey: Playing devil’s advocate… (I do this one all the time.)
• Be provocative: I’d like to throw a curve ball here and suggest something very different…

Written by Dave Johnson. http://www.bnet.com/blog/businesstips/low-risk-ways-to-speak-up-in-a-meeting/9609?tag=mantle_skin;content

meaningful quote

And there came a time when the risk of remaining closed tight in a bud far outweighted the risk it took to bloom.

-a.n.

The Secret Behind Google Earth

Thanks http://main.makeuseoflimited.netdna-cdn.com/tech-fun/wp-content/uploads/2010/10/googlebirdview.jpg!

How Shidduchim are redt...

And isn't it amazing that at times it actually works!

http://badforshidduchim.files.wordpress.com/2010/10/comic-001-10-06-10.jpg