Rabbi Bruce's Reflections on Life

 Dear Friends, I hope you will forgive me for filling your inbox but as I sit here alone in the house after a beautiful weekend with a couple of you in the midwest (you know who you are), it has been a time to reflect. On Sunday, Oct. 27, 1974 I didn't feel well and Sue came to visit me in the dorm and brought me some chicken soup that she had heated up in the microwave in the lounge   at Blaisdell Hall at the University of Illinois which was part of Pennsylvania Ave. Residence Halls .   I was so very touched by Sue's act of kindness (who knew that this was the beginning of what would be over 50 years of receiving acts of kindness from my beloved friend). Today and tomorrow mark the 51st anniversary of that special moment in our lives.  And, maybe more important than feeling better from the chicken soup which is often known as Jewish penicillin, was what followed. I asked her to marry me and well please listen to the lyrics below and you will understand w...

  Dear Friends, There used to be a television program called "that was the week that was..." which reviewed events of the previous week. Well for those of you who have been reading these blogs religiously, this past week was a tough week and this blog will be intense.  But I haven't hidden my feelings for 29 weeks so why start now?  . In the weekly Torah reading, we read about the Tower of Babel and how language was confused as folks tried  to  build a tower to heaven.  As I think about their difficulty in communicating, I continue to think about the things that we sometimes neglect to say to our loved ones when we can. I had the opportunity to see the musical,  Damn Yankees  this week and the following song was very poignant for me.  As  you  listen to the lyrics, you will understand that when one doesn't  have the chance to say goodbye, one is filled with lots of mixed emotions about what was said and...

 Dear Friends, A number of you will know who you  are as you read the following and I am grateful for your ongoing support. As we begin the Torah again with the Sabbath of Creation I want to talk about words with which we are all familiar.  I  have read them thousands of times and remember my father turning on the light switch when I would be sitting in the dark and he would say, "let there be light."  We know that one of the first acts of creation was the creation of light. In one of his many  postings, Rabbi Jonathan Sacks quotes Joseph Sooveitchek who writes in his book  Halachic Man   “The most fundamental principle of all is that man must create himself." So how does one go about creating oneself when one endures a significant loss.  One of you  has asked me to talk about the light in my life as I experience it.  Well the light burned brightly this week on so many levels. First, there is a custom at the conclusion of ...

 Dear Friends, First of all, we pause to give thanks for the release of the living hostages yesterday and grieve for all those who  have died in the Middle East the past two years.  Although we are joyful, we are also cognizant of the pain of so many and so greet the ongoing news from the Middle East with many mixed emotions.  I recently facilitated a class at George Mason University where we all shared how we respond to grief.  At a Jewish wedding we are joyful and break a glass as even at the most joyful of events we are aware of suffering.  One phenomenon that all of us experience, no matter what our political views are, is that we all grieve for our losses.  May the days ahead be filled with more joy than sadness and may we all hold each other through the hard times and share the happy ones.   Last night I lit a yahrzeit (memorial) candle by myself for the first time since Sue passed away . Fortunately, one ...

 Dear Friends, We are in the intermediate days of the Festival of Sukkot which is referred to  as a time to be happy and rejoice....One of the symbols of this Festival is a Sukkah which reminds us of the huts or booths that our ancestors built in the wilderness.  They are meant to be strong enough to withstand the weather as we eat and spend time in them during Sukkot. As I write this there is a cease fire pending in Gaza, the hostages are supposed to be released, and there finally  may be an end to the suffering and war that has occurred during the past two years.  Our hopes and prayers are for a lasting peace and yet, I think we all realize the fragility  of any peace agreement. I want to speak about my current state of mind and heart as so many of you continue to  support me during my grief journey. Please note that this is the time of the year in which we read the scroll of Ecclesiates (also called Koheleth).  Chapter 3 should be familiar...