The Crossroads In My Life - Every Jew Has A Spiritual G.P.S.

Oh’ where should I go?
Oh’ what should I do?
Who can I turn to if not you?
I need help from you so.

I am so lost, completely alone.
Should I go right,
Or left?
Or maybe straight through?

I don’t have any gas,
You didn’t give me enough.
My G.P.S. is now broken,
And my car battery is drained.

I have no phone service,
I can’t find my way home.
I’m lost on the side of the road.
I must now continue on my own.

I trek down the road,
For miles on end.
Twisting and turning,
Hoping I’m going the right way.

There’s no one around to help,
The streets are completely deserted.
Finally I see a glimmer of hope,
By way of a familiar street sign.

Turns out I was going,
The right way after all.
Finally I made my way home,
To the safety of my four walls.
This story is just a parable,
A lesson that needs to be learnt.
It teaches us,
That we really aren’t alone.

Someone is guiding our footsteps,
Making sure we go on the right path.
Someone is testing us,
To see if we will give up in despair; or not.

The man in our story is the Jewish Nation,
The person leading us is G-d.
He is telling us:
Even when you think I’m not there; I really am.

He’s hiding; yet helping.
We must always keep this in mind.
No matter what we may do, or how hard we may try,
We’ll find our way back with only his help.

Because there is someone above,
Who cares about our well-being.
He tests us though,
To see if we really believe in him.

But no matter what,
He’ll help us find the right path.
It may be long and hard,
But we must never give up hope.

The Missing Link

 א‘ דרוש חודש אייר התש‘‘ע
Three months and ten days ago, a link was taken from the everlasting chain of the Jewish people. The name of this link: Pesha Leah Azoulay—Roetter.
           
             This link wasn't your ordinary link. It was unique. If Pesha Leah saw another link in the process of snapping in two; she would right away grasp that link, and attach it to her own.  Pesha’s link, we all thought, was indestructible; that it was solid steel. But now it’s gone! Gone, leaving hundreds of links floating around with nothing to attach themselves to.

Pesha’s link was what brought together hundreds upon hundreds of lost links and attached them to הקדוש ברוך הוא. Now, being that ה‘ broke off Link Pesha Leah, many links, more than ever before, are floating around; lost with no protection.

But we must keep in mind a promise and trust that we remind ה‘ of 3-4 times each day. Everyday we say in davening: מכלכל חיים בחסד—He sustains the living with loving kindness….. ומקים אמונתו לישני עפר—and He fulfills His trust to those who sleep in the dust… ונאמן אתה להחיות מתים—You are trustworthy to revive the dead…. ברוך אתה ה‘ מחיה המתים—Blessed are you G-d who revives the dead.

So, not only do we believe that He will revive the dead; but that He will help the living. He will help all those lost links attach themselves back. And He will help them overcome this test of faith.

May we merit the fulfillment of the end of the verse as well, the promise of the Resurrection of the Dead. This way those lost links can once again attach themselves to Link Pesha Leah, who will be attached to Link Moshiach. May this happen right now, אמן סלה!

May the Neshamah of Pesha Leah bas Chaim Leibel have a complete aliyah!
May all of those lost links reconnect to Hashem’s chain immediately!

The Connection Is Never Lost

T.T.T.O Ashrainu - Avraham Fried
Dedicated in honor of anyone who may have any questions on G-dDearest G-d in Heaven,
You are my father.
Dearest G-d in Heaven,
I am your son.

You are supposed to be with me,
Whenever I desire.
From the moment that I am born,
Till the moment that I expire!

And yet, and yet sometimes it seems to me,
That you just leave me be.
Sometimes it seems like you are really not here,
And in fact completely elsewhere!

 *,אשרינו אשרינו אשרינו מה טוב חלקנו
Where are you when I really need you?!
ומה נעים, ומה נעים גורלנו,
Who can I turn to if not you??
ומה יפה, יפה, יפה, יפה ירושתנו,
Oh’ what should I do?

You give me so many hard tests,
That I hardly have time to rest.
My life is a crazy roller coaster, on which I am riding.
If only you would please stop hiding!!

I don’t have the strength that I do need,
To pass this horrible decree.
I need help from Above,
From my father in Heaven, whose son He does love.

So please, let me know,
Where are you when I need you so?
You are supposed to always be there,
For your child, if you really care.

 *,אשרינו אשרינו אשרינו מה טוב חלקנו
Where are you when I really need you?!
ומה נעים, ומה נעים גורלנו,
Who can I turn to if not you??
ומה יפה, יפה, יפה, יפה ירושתנו,
Oh’ what should I do?

But really I know this is not true,
This is something you would never do.
Because you are Hashem who,
Would never forsake a Jew.

There is a certain connection,
That we have in our possession.
There is a special love we have, oh’ yes we do!
It connects us to הקדוש ברוך הוא.

Now, I know,
That you were really helping me.
You had me on your shoulders,
This I now clearly see.

 *,אשרינו אשרינו אשרינו מה טוב חלקנו
How fortunate are we that we are Jews.
ומה נעים, ומה נעים גורלנו,
That we are always connected to you.
ומה יפה, יפה, יפה, יפה ירושתנו,
No matter what we may do!

There is nothing more to say,
You’re with us every single day.
Even for a moment, you never leave us,
To find you, we don’t need to take a bus.

You never leave us at all,
You never ever let us fall.
And even when we do,
You bring us right back up to you!

And so, being that we are your daughters and sons,
Our connection to you is never really done.
So, yes I now truly know,
That you do love us so.

 *,אשרינו אשרינו אשרינו מה טוב חלקנו
How fortunate are we that we are Jews.
ומה נעים, ומה נעים גורלנו,
That we are always connected to you.
ומה יפה, יפה, יפה, יפה ירושתנו,
No matter what we may do!

 *,אשרינו אשרינו אשרינו מה טוב חלקנו
How fortunate am I that I am a Jew.
ומה נעים, ומה נעים גורלנו,
That I am always connected to you.
ומה יפה, יפה, יפה, יפה ירושתנו,
No matter what I may do!

*Translation
אשרינו מה טוב חלקנו—Fortunate are we! How good is our portion!
ומה נעים גורלנו—How pleasant is our lot!
ומה יפה ירושתנו—How beautiful is our heritage!

Outside My Window

I look outside my window,

And what do I see?

I see a slightly cloudy sky,

And a bird perched on a tree.

I see tall buildings,

And trees gone bare with time.

I see cars and people,

And parking meters that you wished cost only a dime.

I see a sun starting to set,

It rose in the east;but now it’s going down west.

I see houses and I see a bike,

I see a couple enjoying a breeze that everyone does like.

Cars zoom by,

Not knowing what they are missing.

While I gaze contently,

A breath-taking view my eyes are now taking.

G-d painted a picture for us,

Whether Fall, Winter, Spring or Summer.

To zoom right by, without even a backwards glance,

Isn’t that such a bummer?

This world is perfect,

As you can see.

What possible change,

Should there be?!

Yet, my picture isn’t the same,

As someone down the block.

They see something quite different,

They may even see someone changing a lock!

‘A picture says a thousand words’,

As the saying goes.

Check it out! You’d be amazed!

Take it from someone who knows!

It’s just outside the window,

Not far from you at all.

You can even stand on a chair,

If you’re just not that tall.

It’s worth it to see,

This creation that G-d made somehow.

It won’t be the same tomorrow,

Or even an hour from now!

The World Is A Gift - Don't Miss A Second Of It!

Pesha Leah Roetter-Azoulay OB"M

Pesha Leah Roetter - Azoulay OB"M
Each day she changed the world for the better
She lived 23 beautiful years
Hashem took her from us via a car accident
Achdus in the world was her life-goal

Learning and Davening were constantly recited by her
Every Mitzvah was precious in her eyes
A smile was always on her lips
Her motto was: "Ashrainu - How Fortunate!"

Running always to help another Jew
Our people suffered a great loss with her passing
Each moment of her life, she was preparing the world for Moshiach
The Rebbe & Rebbetzen were her mentors, and she was a mentor for others
Taught many the ways of Hashem
Everlasting in our memories, she will be
Rose amongst the thorns; Redemption is very near

Life Vs. Death

T.T.T.O. It Happened Yom Kippur

The birds keep chirping, the sun keeps shinning,
Fish keep splashing, flowers still blossom.
O' how can nature keep going on this way,
When my life is dimming each day?!

How can it be such a beautiful day,
When my world has gone all dark and gray? x2

Someone just died,
Or tragedy struck.
And yet things go on,
Is it just me, or do I have bad luck?

And yet life keeps going on, and on, and on.
But this you must never forget:
Hashem gives us all the strength,
To pass this horrible test.

He always creates
The cure before the sickness.
Believe me,
This time is not at all different!

We must thank Hashem,
For the good as well as the bad.
Whether you're an old man,
Or just a young lad.

Remember:
Although death does happen,
Nature does not stop.
Hashem feels your pain,
And collects all of your tear drops.

The Redemption IS coming!
It's on its way.
We just need to make the best,
Out of every day!!

My Road Trip - January 2009

“Oh man! Oh man! What am I going to do?! Winter break is approaching and I have nothing to do. This is going to be the worst winter break ever.” This is what was going through my mind at about New Year’s time. How little did I know how wrong I was.

          Anyways, school went on like regular. Finally, one day I call up my mother to see what I should do for mid-winter vacation, and I hear that my sister, Shayna, is coming to visit me!! My joy knew no bounds. I’ll be doing something, and with my sister, too! But that was only half the surprise. The other half still remained a secret. Now, I just couldn’t wait for winter vacation!

          About a week before vacation, I’m told the other half: I’m going to Detroit! How? By car! This is getting great. Man! From doing nothing for a week, to driving to Detroit! I must be dreaming! Nobody pinch me, I don’t want to wake up! I just couldn’t believe that this is real life!

          Well, for that week I’m packing and getting ready. I was told I’ll be in Detroit for: (Thursday?) Friday, שבת, and Sunday. But I still had to pack for the first days of vacation. Man, it’s not easy to pack for five days in a small carry-on size duffel bag.

          Finally, the big day, Sunday January 18, 2009, arrives. I davened with the shul and then called Shayna. She was coming at around 9:00 to pick me up. I was soon picked up by Shayna and Buddy. Who’s Buddy? Buddy is this really great dog that Shayna just got. He’s really cool. I’ll speak more about him later on in the composition.

          Then we went to pick up Ari Chapman (the person my sister is dating). He’s a really, really cool guy!

          Well, we talked and caught up on things. Then we went to pick up Ari’s almost two year old son, Adam. He is really fun and cute. This is the second time meeting him. Once we picked Adam up, we drove to this really awesome dog park not far away. You should really see Buddy play! He’s amazing at jumping! We were playing fetch and some stupid dog took the ball and dropped it by its master’s feet. The guy told me to take it. ‘Don’t worry, he won’t bite you’ he said. Well, I take the ball and start going towards Shayna and Ari, when the stupid dog jumps and my whole hand ends up in his mouth! So much for ‘it won’t bite’!

          Then we went to visit Ari’s aunt (Adam’s great aunt) Mildred. We all went onto the porch and talked. Adam and I played. That is until I fell asleep on the lawn chair with Adam underneath me! Well, it was a great first day of vacation! We dropped Adam back off at his house, then I went to stay by Ari’s friend’s house. I went on the computer and watched the concert for Obama’s inauguration. Then I hit the sack.

          Monday : After davening and breakfeast, we went to pick up Adam for a day at the beach! But first we went to meet up with the Schulman family (consisting of: Ari’s sister, Tamar, and her husband, Yochanan; and their kids: Avi and Sholom.) what a sight the greeting in the store was! Cousins hugging and laughing and playing!

          To the beach! Off we went to Vero Beach for a fantastic day in the soft sand and wide ocean. When we arrived, we all changed and hit the water. Ahh! Those waves were pretty big, and boy did it hurt when I didn’t jump on time! But it was so much fun! We were there for a good couple of hours!

Sadly, the time came when we had to leave. But, of course, we had to do group pictures first! Then we left and we went to drop off Adam, then Ari. This time I was staying by our friend Nacho (it’s just a nickname!)’s house.

          On Tuesday we got up early, packed, picked up Ari and Buddy, davened, ate and hit the road. We went through, I believe, four states that day! That night we all slept in the car by some welcome center.

          Wednesday we arrive in Baltimore! We dropped off Buddy by Tamar’s house (where we were going to spend the night). And then we drive to Washington D.C.! We went to the Holocaust Museum, where we met up with my Uncle Mark (whom I haven’t seen since I was like two!) and we spent a couple of hours there. Then we meet Mark’s friend and we went to a small coffee shop to talk. I am serious. If I couldn’t do anything else my whole trip, but spend those few hours talking with Shayna, Ari, Uncle Mark and his friend; I would be completely satisfied. Those few hours we spent together, would be enough for me.

          Later, after a mad dash to pick up our car, we went to see the White House! We took pictures in the back because the front still had bleachers from the inauguration the day before (the back looks better anyways!) Later, after searching all over for a gas station, we went souvenir shopping. I got the perfect picture frame. It has all around the picture different things: the Washington Monument, the Capital, the White House, the Pentagon etc… Then we headed back to Baltimore to spend the night.

          On Thursday we woke up, davened, did  random stuff, had sushi for brunch, watched cartoons, and then hit the road [leaving Ari behind (so it was just Shayna, me, and Buddy)].

          I kept saying to myself: ‘I wish Yaakov (Docks, my best friend) could see Buddy’. Guess what? I found out that Yaakov was going to be in town too! It turns out that he had his break then also!

          On Friday morning, we arrived in Detroit!!! I went straight to see my two wonderful nieces, before they left for Cheder, and my sister Malcah, and my father. Then I went to my old school to see my mother and some of my old rabbeim.

          I spent Shabbos at the Docks’s house with Yaakov. It was great! On Moitze Shabbos, Hudsi Rosenberg and Yaakov slept over! We had a lot of fun!

          Sunday: We all woke up, davened, and played. Later Hudsi went home and Yaakov and I, went to Jerusalem Pizza (the best pizza store) for lunch, where we ate a nice, big meal. Then I went to get a watch. We then had some fun for the rest of the day. Finally, Yaakov had to go home. So I went to Sara’s Deli (the best restaurant for meat), where I ordered to go for me and my mother. We had a nice little supper at home. After supper, my friend Dovi Rosenberg (Hudsi’s brother) came over. We played for a few hours until he was picked up. Then came the hard task of packing, for I was going back to yeshiva early the next day. I was packing until like two or three in the morning, when I fell asleep on the couch.

          On Monday morning, I was woken up at about six thirty, to go to the airport. Shayna took me. When I was checking in, I was told that since I was only fourteen, I had to have a parent check in with me. You see I was flying North West Airlines. So Shayna had to park and check me in. Then, security was moving to slow, since it was tightened. Boy, was I running late! Just my luck that my gate happened to be all the way at the very end of the terminal! I got there just as they were closing the door! Whew! It was a nice ride. Then I took a shuttle and soon arrived on yeshiva grounds.