Just Imagine

(Based on a Shmuz by Rabbi Shafier of TheShmuz.com and Tiferes Bnei Torah)
Close your eyes for just a moment. Picture nothing. Blackness. Grey. Empty. Nothing.
Now, imagine a beach.... clear, blue, crystal shining water... a green palm tree in the brightest share... a vast, expansive blue sky... a beaming sun warming your skin...
Hold that image in your head. Don't let it go.
It's beautiful, isn't it?
Now. BAM!
The realities of life come crashing down, all the responsibilities, the hectic schedules and overwhelming duties to yourself and to others. You're rushing around trying to fulfill all of life's demands and that pretty picture just fades away... a faint memory slowly being crushed by the billions of other things that come to occupy its now missing place. Suddenly, that bliss is gone, only to return when you have a moment to stop and conjure it up again. It only exists because you were able to create it, imagine it, design it in your mind. You willed it into being. It was real, SO real, but only to you, and only for the moments that you could keep it real in your mind...
And that is the distinct difference between us, mere humans, and G-d, the All-Powerful, CONSTANT Creator of this incredibly detailed and complex world.
HaKadosh Baruch Hu doesn't need to sit at His desk with His head between His hands to imagine his world, to will it into existence. It exists solely because G-d is constantly renewing it. Humans need to stop to create. G-d is always creating. Every second that you move, that you breathe, that you are ALIVE, is because G-d decided it should be, so it was, is, and will be for as long as He so desires.
Nothing gets in His way. An earthquake might delay a human being from fulfilling his plans, but that very earthquake FULFILLS G-d's plans. It WAS His plan.
Every detail, every minuscule, almost insignificant facet of this world, that without the world wouldn't run properly is constantly being willed to be by G-d.
Imagine if one muscle in your body stopped working. What if one vein just decided it was tired and stopped? What if the trees didn't take in carbon monoxide and release oxygen?
Seemingly small details come together to form a larger, gradner picture, entirely painted by HaKadosh Baruch Hu.
Don't you feel comfortable knowing that that Master Artist is continuously creating his creations and renewing them each day?

Fashion Crisis

Walking down the street
You see those girlies in the heat
The Bais Yaakov maidels
Looking so aidel
But beneath the black and dark
Is something sinister-hark!
It’s the desire to wear color and fun
But sadly we gotta blend in with everyone!

We try with flair

To do our hair

As different as the rest

And see who can do it best

The highest bump clipped

Or the neatest bangs snipped

We tell ourselves to be different, for sure!

But if we do, would we cause too much allure?

I'll wear color one day

But I am scared to be sent away

Out of my close knit circle of black clad friends

Whose rules for apparel, never seem to bend

The same flairy skirt, or pencil style

That has been "in fashion" for a while

Or the black Junee tops with bows

Yea, one day I'll own one of those

But do I want to be

Just like everyone I see?

In the same drab

That seems so fab

Yet it falls flat

When I think of that

Becoming my life fashion choices

Dictated by the silent style voices

They think they know me inside and out

But who I am REALLY, they know nothing about

That I can't be defined or diminished by black

And I'll do my best to use that missing color to elaborate what I lack

What it cuts off in style and creativity

I'll make up in talent and personality

So fashion dictators of the world, I pray tell

Why do you dress me and pretend to know me so well?

In Their World

What's it like inside their world
Is all just well and great?
Do they feel trapped inside their minds
Because they can't enunciate?

Do they think like you and I
With thoughts so straight and clear?
Do they recognize special friends
Who hold them close and near?

Though they make not look like others
Their expressions are strange and undefined
They are the most precious gems
That anyone could ever find

Photoshop Series: Untouched Beauty

(Click for larger view)

Although this new series is supposed to exhibit my creations in Photoshop, this picture represents all of my feelings about the program when it comes to "enhancing photos". New creations like my previous post I feel are more acceptable. They reflect talent in the program (not that I'm so chasuv), not skill in changing Hashem's world through means of airbrushing people or landscaping a photo differently. When I took this photo the world felt so clean, so perfect, and so real. There was a breeze, a shining sun, and just pure bliss. For a few moments, I felt like the world was safe, like everything would be ok.
In this scene, I see the perfection of Hashem's world. I see His distinct touch in the color, the landscape, and everything this picture encompasses. Perfection cannot be created in Photoshop. It cannot be enhanced through tools and filters. This scene is perfection. This is Hashem's world. All I could do is add "Ma Rabu Maaesecha Hashem." How Wondrous is Your World Hashem.

Copyright 2010

(Please do not send, save or share without my permission)

Understanding Life Through the Dynamic of Death

Ok, I stole that title from a shiur the Rabbi of my shul gave... but, I am going to elaborate on a different aspect than what he spoke about.
As I was driving in the glorious sun after bestowing a treat to my dear friend, I saw a sight.... and it shook me. It was a line of cars, fifteen or twenty, I wasn't counting, but there were a lot. And on the front of each of their cars was an orange sticker that read "Funeral". My heart froze. My mind raced. Who was it? Who died? And why?
Then, as I continued driving, I thought, Wow... so many people are coming to escort this person to their final resting.... They must have been special.
And I think that is a very important thing to remember in life, when losing someone we love. True it is hard. True, it is sad. But think of that person, their neshama hovering between this world and the next, warmed and happy to see they were loved... and those who escort the meis can realize their connection with the person who passed. They can recall special moments, happy times and pleasant memories.
Death can be sad. A young life cut short. A person, farther on in their years, tragically taken from this world. It is hard, SO hard to understand, to cope with and make sense of... But their death, the actual event, lo haikar, it is not the main thing. The moments before, the moments after, those are the crucial times in a person's life... and their death. The time before a person passes on can be filled, PACKED with so much goodness, so much happiness and love, accomplishment and wonder. The moments after serve as a testimony to the impact the person who passed on left on others. Kabalos taken on as an aliyah. Kavod HaMeis. Levaya. Shiva. Shloshim. Aveilus. It shows that a person MEANT something, they WERE someone. How sad it is for someone who passes on with no one to acknowledge their passing...
I pray, I beg, that for the people in your life, you hold on to. You connect, make connections, and hold on to for dear life... because how tragic would it be for someone to pass on, someone you were close with, or knew, to go on without anyone to say goodbye or recall with fondness how special they were...

New Series: Photoshop Series- Life

 have decided to begin a new series on my blog entitled: The Photoshop Series...
Below is the first exhibit in the series...
I made it based on a speech from Chevi Garfinkel. She was discussing how in life, we have our ups and our downs... we wish for things to be smooth sailing, straight, no bumps, just stam. But then, we have to realize, if there is no up or down, there is no life. If life is straight, stam, it means you are dead. If you don't rise when you fall, you will never get up. If you don't fall, you will never learn. You must strive to lift yourself up. You must accept your own faults and deficiencies. Mistakes don't break you. They make you. They form you and change you. As Chazal says: Sheva yipol Tzdaik Va'Kum. Seven times a Tzadik will fall and rise.
So sometimes you may fall, stumble, or succumb to the depths, but as long as you reach up, strive for better things and to redeem yourself, you will live.

Copyright 2010

(Please do not send, save or share without my permission)

Please Help: Camp Simcha

I am a huge advocate for Camp Simcha and Chai Lifeline.
Camp is starting soon.
Please help ensure that every kid who can benefit from Camp Simcha is able to go

Donate to Camp Simcha Here


Tizku L'Mitzvos

(More about Camp Simcha to come soon....)

Let's Be Friends

Let's be friends
Best friend
We can skip
And play
Together we'll watch
Our worries fade away

Never mind that they remain
Stark
Like black on white
Impossible to hide
Like a flashing neon sign
Blaring in the night

Forget that we were
Hot, cold
Those things won't be told
We'll be
Cheery and happy
Denying reality


Just realize
I'll shut down
When you forget to come around
In your honesty
And my own sanity
Is at stake

My own precious feelings
Mean little to others
Who want to mess around
Because I am the friend
You can crush into the ground
Then revive as you please
Simple, with ease

So if I break
Like snapping a twig in two
It means nothing
To you, you, or you
I am disposable
You can recycle me
Again and again

I am here for you
Disregarding what I need
Or want
Because this power you have
You take advantage and flaunt
In a subtle
Subconscious way
That I am sure
You'll realize one day

Ribono Shel Olam- Do You Hear Me?

Ribono Shel Olam
You test me
More than ten times a day
In what I will do
And what I will say
So for that, I call to you with a plea

You test me daily
In my choice of speech
Will I say the right words, to help or harm
To calm others, or raise an alarm
To teach Your word, or merely preach?

You test me constantly
In acting like the daughter of a king
In when and where I sing
And how I dress
With all the kavod I keep inside
I strive to do the right thing

But Ribono Shel Olam
Can't you see I'm struggling
My Yetzer Hara is pulling and tugging
To drag me to the wayside
And from his terrible ways
I am too weak to run and hide

My Yetzer Tov
Protests inwardly, I'm sure
But since I have pushed him so far down
His soft, reassuring voice
No longer has the power to deter
And again, I make the wrong choice

Ribono Shel Olam, Dearest Father
Do you hear me cry?
The silent sobs that rip me apart
Do they soar and reach the sky?
Their quiet whispers
Come from the depths of my heart

I wish for You
To guide me closer to You
Away from the falsehood
To find a way of life
That is honest and true
Not fake and full of strife

Father,
Loving father of mine
Can you please send me a sign?
Something to show me
That you still care
Even if I can't feel
That You are there?

Top Ten

Looking at my own blog, I see a sad string of posts and I am NOT a sad person. So, I have decided to switch gears, and talk about something lighter: things I would like to accomplish
Below is a list of things I would like to accomplish before... next year?

10) Achieve the perfect chip to salsa/guacamole ratio
I hate having chips leftover and nothing to dip them in.., and what good is the salsa/guacamole after it's been poured out and (maybe) (double) dipped in??
9) Write a song
This has been something I have been working on for a while. I know how to write poetry but somehow, writing a song has been my forte, yet I am determined.
8) Write a novel!
Since fourth grade I have been writing-novels, poetry, and more recently, blog posts! But my novel excursions tend to fall flat for many reasons. But, I will try again.
7) Make a duct tape bag
I LOVE duct tape, but since it's SO time consuming to try and make something, and would require a LOT of duct tape, I haven't been able to make one. Anyhow, I need a new school bag.. summer project? Maybe!
6) Achieve blogger-lebrity
Yes, that's blogger celebrity... who knows? Maybe one day someone will want to publish my posts as a novel! (not...) And maybe its unrealistic as a one year goal... Who knows!
5) Direct and produce a movie
This may sound grossly impossible, but I have a lot of experience in making movies (of the more slideshow variety. Stay tuned for exciting news) but I want to make a movie, something to change and inspire...
4) Meet one blogger friend in real life
Will it be you? Or you? Or... not?
3) Find a balance between being selfish and selfless
Something I need to work on... instead of going from extreme to extreme
2) Sleep more than six hours a night
Self explanatory
1) My number one accomplishment I hope to achieve....
_________________________________________
Fill in the blank
Be sure to write in pencil
Cuz everything changes....

What's your top ten?

Reality

And so she smiled
As sweet as can be
In the face of the monster
Called reality.

It bared its ugly teeth
And flared its nostrils wide
Under its scrutinizing glare
There was no where to hide

In it's home, a cave
Filled with dark shadows, no light
She tried to run
As her soul was filled with fright

But the monster gave chase
And despite how fast the little girl tried to run
The monster was always ahead
And it seemed like he had won

Her throbbing legs
And aching heart
Proved how she felt
Like she was being torn apart

Was there anywhere
She would be safe and free
A place where she could escape
The pains of reality?

Because that monster
Tests and tries
To break you down
Your dead soul is his prize

When you run away
He will pursue
But if you befriend him
He will be helpful to you

Don't run
Despite the chase
Invite him to join you
And create your own place

Reality, you fiend
I thought you were my foe
But truly you're my comrade
And now the truth, I know

Exciting News

I can't post what it is exactly yet, but I have some exciting news!

Check back for the grand unveiling!