Jewels 2006

When I was turning eleven, my neighbor, whose birthday fell on the day after mine, suggested that we have a joint party. Her family belonged

What I have learned thus far is never to give up on the dream of perfection. This vision of perfection reverberates in my head and

From: Zadie Louie: Greet everyone. Bubbie Ida: Bake mandel bread. Grandma Celia: Soap operas rock. Mom Bernice: Always think about others. Dad Alan: Be creative.

It has always been a mysterious experience to light the Shabbat candles. Bubby used a napkin to cover her head, reciting the b’racha every Shabbat.

Think ought. Not what is a Jew, but what oughta Jew to be. Not what is a synagogue, but what oughta synagogue to be. Not what prayer is, but what prayer oughtto be. Not

I recently reflected on the fact that I had been happy for a sustained period of time. I don’t mean that sense of happiness attributed

Each year as Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur approach, we are reminded that sin creates distance. Distance creates factions. So we proclaim the unity of

I’ve learned the difference between being purposeful about an issue and being self-righteous about it. I have been self-righteous about too many things in my

What I have learned thus far is that we all can and must keep learning all the time.We learn from experience, we learn from others

I have known for some time now that life is a waiting room. We wait for something wonderful to happen: love, elation, success, admiration, maybe

On July 6, a telephone conference was arranged between me and Mayor Eli Moyal of the Israeli city of Sderot. Many of its inhabitants are

I come from Aden, the hottest place in the world. I was born near the Red Sea, the sun rises from there, opposite to our

Whenever I’m invited to speak to what I think will be a large audience, and I am confronted instead with a very small group of

After four years of high school, I have learned many things. I learned that Genghis Khan led China’s Yuan Dynasty, and that the word “amazing”

Three years ago, if I had told you that the Shema would be heard on MTV, that thousands would gather to hear Israeli, Arab, Jewish,

I used to think I knew a lot, storing facts in my brain thinking I was smarter, wiser and better than most others. Giraffes don’t

I love Sh-he-ch-ya-nu moments. It was ever so subtle, almost gone before I really noticed it. In an instant, my son Noah was separate from

My wife gave birth this year to our first child. It was as glorious, miraculous and terrifying as everyone always tells you.It was also, as

When I was nineteen, I left our Cuban village for Havana to pursue my dream of becoming a singer. I worked in a factory for

I used to think that every person on the street held a secret, every storefront a storynow I drive past them without wondering what they

We were set up on a blind date.Two UCLA grads whose paths had never crossed were unexpectedly brought together by a pair of well-meaning Executive

There is much I have learned in a journey that has taken me from Beverly Hills all the way to the Beverly Hills Post Office

Echoes for Eternity – These words from the movie Gladiator have stayed with me and organized my life since my unit was mobilized in October 2005.

The Hafetz Hayyim, Rabbi Israel Meir Kagan, earned widespread fame as the author of treatises decrying ‘lashon hara’, idle gossip.The story is told that Rabbi

When I was in 8th grade, Mr. Ben Yudin, my comparative religion teacher extraordinaire, asked the class a question. “What are the four words you

Last May a demonstration took place on the UCLA campus. The Muslim Students Association set up a mock checkpoint on the main campus drag. To

I learned in bodybuilding that the best way to gain strength was to take my muscles to their absolute limit – to the point of

Several years ago, our son Yaron embarked on a semester in New York. Looking for an apartment, he scanned websites and newspaper ads – all

Regular encounters with death have taught me to look into people’s eyes and to hear their words with both urgency and patience. There is such