There are points in our life's journey when we begin to questions whether we are traveling on the tracks we are meant to stay on or is it time to change tracks at the switch yard. The answer to this question may not be an easy one to make and we begin to ask ourselves how do I know what is the right decision? Many of us go through our lives on auto pilot, ignoring the signs that are raised that are meant to make us take notice and revaluate our journey to see if we missed our stop to change tracks and go in a new direction. For some,…

Each of us has had those moments in our lives where things just keep happening and we feel like the tide is rising and we are going to be in over our heads. It is the worst feeling in the world especially when there appears to be no plug to pull to let the water resend. It is in these moments we feel alone, scared and, in some cases, desperate. So how do we survive the rising tide and keep our heads above water? Unfortunately, there is no perfect answer. All we can do is find a way to not let the water take us under. I started thinking about…

Dance has been a central part of my life for as long as I can remember but it has become my life line for much of my adult life. I started dancing when I was 2 years old when my mom signed me up for dance classes. Little did I know that she was giving me the greatest coping method I could ever ask for. My early years in dance were spent learning dance routines to be performed for end of the year recitals and then later for competition. It was not until I started studying dance at college that I realized the power of the art form I had…

So many times we tell ourselves that we will "do it tomorrow" but what we fail to remember is that tomorrow is not promised. Since this is the last post for 2018, I thought it was appropriate to think for a minute, what if tomorrow never comes? How many things would we miss out on because we said we would do it tomorrow? When I think back on my own life there are many missed opportunities because I kept telling myself I would do it tomorrow, next week, next month or next year. Some of those missed opportunities I looked back on with regret and realized that I took for…

As this year is coming to an end, many of us begin thinking of what we want the new year to have in store of us. Many people start their new year resolutions and are waiting to get started once the new year is here. But I ask myself, why do we value these goals so much? Is it that we believe that only when the new year begins that we can set these goals that we will follow this year unlike years past where they have been forgotten as the year progresses forward? Or, is it the promise that a new something holds for us - hope. For many…

We all know that one day we will have to live through the death of our parents.  This is not something we can avoid because that is the circle of life.  Even though we know this is something that is unavoidable, nothing can really prepare us for when that day comes, especially when we lose our first parent.  As kids, we see our parents as our steadfast, always there, the people we can count on no matter what, and the one we expect to be there when life hits us with the low points.  Our parents, as much as we may not want to admit it when we are young,…

If we are totally honest with ourselves, this question of are we good enough has entered all of our minds at least once in our lives.  Actually, more than once.  It is a basic question but it can lead to great enlightenment through self reflection or it can take us down a dark path to a place of doubt that can do more harm than good.  I can not count the number of times this question has entered my own mind.  As a child I remember asking myself this many times.  As a young adult navigating the choppy waters of high school and then college this question entered my mind…

Thanksgiving is a time where we gather together with family and friends to celebrate the anniversary of the first Thanksgiving diner.  How many of us stop for a moment to think of what we are thankful for in our lives?  This seems like a simple question but if we had to name the things we are thankful for how many of us could easily come up with a short list?  For several years now I have made it an annual tradition to post to Facebook each day something I am thankful for during the entire month of November.  In the beginning the things I am thankful for are easy to…

When I began thinking about starting a blog, this was what I had planned to make my first blog post.  You see, several years ago I decided to start writing a book about, well you guessed it, life experiences and how they are valuable life lessons. My plan was to take a different event in my life as a chapter and explain the event, how I handled it and the lessons I took away from it as a guide to how to handle life.  I thought that by sharing my stories that this might help others going through the same things to feel like they were not alone and if…

This was not what I planned to write my first blog about but, as a former teacher, I am taking this as a teachable moment.  This Saturday, our country saw hatred insert its evil into a peaceful Shabbat morning where members of the Jewish Community of the The Tree of Life had gathered to worship and celebrate a life event of a new baby.  Hatred is nothing new to the 21st Century let alone the United States.  Hatred has been in existence for centuries and it is fed by the ignorance of those who believe it the ignorance of what they are taught and exposed to.  Sometimes this ignorance is…

There are points in our life's journey when we begin to questions whether we are traveling on the tracks we are meant to stay on or is it time to change tracks at the switch yard. The answer to this question may not be an easy one to make and we begin to ask ourselves how do I know what is the right decision? Many of us go through our lives on auto pilot, ignoring the signs that are raised that are meant to make us take notice and revaluate our journey to see if we missed our stop to change tracks and go in a new direction. For some,…

Each of us has had those moments in our lives where things just keep happening and we feel like the tide is rising and we are going to be in over our heads. It is the worst feeling in the world especially when there appears to be no plug to pull to let the water resend. It is in these moments we feel alone, scared and, in some cases, desperate. So how do we survive the rising tide and keep our heads above water? Unfortunately, there is no perfect answer. All we can do is find a way to not let the water take us under. I started thinking about…

Dance has been a central part of my life for as long as I can remember but it has become my life line for much of my adult life. I started dancing when I was 2 years old when my mom signed me up for dance classes. Little did I know that she was giving me the greatest coping method I could ever ask for. My early years in dance were spent learning dance routines to be performed for end of the year recitals and then later for competition. It was not until I started studying dance at college that I realized the power of the art form I had…

So many times we tell ourselves that we will "do it tomorrow" but what we fail to remember is that tomorrow is not promised. Since this is the last post for 2018, I thought it was appropriate to think for a minute, what if tomorrow never comes? How many things would we miss out on because we said we would do it tomorrow? When I think back on my own life there are many missed opportunities because I kept telling myself I would do it tomorrow, next week, next month or next year. Some of those missed opportunities I looked back on with regret and realized that I took for…

As this year is coming to an end, many of us begin thinking of what we want the new year to have in store of us. Many people start their new year resolutions and are waiting to get started once the new year is here. But I ask myself, why do we value these goals so much? Is it that we believe that only when the new year begins that we can set these goals that we will follow this year unlike years past where they have been forgotten as the year progresses forward? Or, is it the promise that a new something holds for us - hope. For many…

We all know that one day we will have to live through the death of our parents.  This is not something we can avoid because that is the circle of life.  Even though we know this is something that is unavoidable, nothing can really prepare us for when that day comes, especially when we lose our first parent.  As kids, we see our parents as our steadfast, always there, the people we can count on no matter what, and the one we expect to be there when life hits us with the low points.  Our parents, as much as we may not want to admit it when we are young,…

If we are totally honest with ourselves, this question of are we good enough has entered all of our minds at least once in our lives.  Actually, more than once.  It is a basic question but it can lead to great enlightenment through self reflection or it can take us down a dark path to a place of doubt that can do more harm than good.  I can not count the number of times this question has entered my own mind.  As a child I remember asking myself this many times.  As a young adult navigating the choppy waters of high school and then college this question entered my mind…

Thanksgiving is a time where we gather together with family and friends to celebrate the anniversary of the first Thanksgiving diner.  How many of us stop for a moment to think of what we are thankful for in our lives?  This seems like a simple question but if we had to name the things we are thankful for how many of us could easily come up with a short list?  For several years now I have made it an annual tradition to post to Facebook each day something I am thankful for during the entire month of November.  In the beginning the things I am thankful for are easy to…

When I began thinking about starting a blog, this was what I had planned to make my first blog post.  You see, several years ago I decided to start writing a book about, well you guessed it, life experiences and how they are valuable life lessons. My plan was to take a different event in my life as a chapter and explain the event, how I handled it and the lessons I took away from it as a guide to how to handle life.  I thought that by sharing my stories that this might help others going through the same things to feel like they were not alone and if…

This was not what I planned to write my first blog about but, as a former teacher, I am taking this as a teachable moment.  This Saturday, our country saw hatred insert its evil into a peaceful Shabbat morning where members of the Jewish Community of the The Tree of Life had gathered to worship and celebrate a life event of a new baby.  Hatred is nothing new to the 21st Century let alone the United States.  Hatred has been in existence for centuries and it is fed by the ignorance of those who believe it the ignorance of what they are taught and exposed to.  Sometimes this ignorance is…

There are points in our life's journey when we begin to questions whether we are traveling on the tracks we are meant to stay on or is it time to change tracks at the switch yard. The answer to this question may not be an easy one to make and we begin to ask ourselves how do I know what is the right decision? Many of us go through our lives on auto pilot, ignoring the signs that are raised that are meant to make us take notice and revaluate our journey to see if we missed our stop to change tracks and go in a new direction. For some,…

Each of us has had those moments in our lives where things just keep happening and we feel like the tide is rising and we are going to be in over our heads. It is the worst feeling in the world especially when there appears to be no plug to pull to let the water resend. It is in these moments we feel alone, scared and, in some cases, desperate. So how do we survive the rising tide and keep our heads above water? Unfortunately, there is no perfect answer. All we can do is find a way to not let the water take us under. I started thinking about…

Dance has been a central part of my life for as long as I can remember but it has become my life line for much of my adult life. I started dancing when I was 2 years old when my mom signed me up for dance classes. Little did I know that she was giving me the greatest coping method I could ever ask for. My early years in dance were spent learning dance routines to be performed for end of the year recitals and then later for competition. It was not until I started studying dance at college that I realized the power of the art form I had…

So many times we tell ourselves that we will "do it tomorrow" but what we fail to remember is that tomorrow is not promised. Since this is the last post for 2018, I thought it was appropriate to think for a minute, what if tomorrow never comes? How many things would we miss out on because we said we would do it tomorrow? When I think back on my own life there are many missed opportunities because I kept telling myself I would do it tomorrow, next week, next month or next year. Some of those missed opportunities I looked back on with regret and realized that I took for…

As this year is coming to an end, many of us begin thinking of what we want the new year to have in store of us. Many people start their new year resolutions and are waiting to get started once the new year is here. But I ask myself, why do we value these goals so much? Is it that we believe that only when the new year begins that we can set these goals that we will follow this year unlike years past where they have been forgotten as the year progresses forward? Or, is it the promise that a new something holds for us - hope. For many…

We all know that one day we will have to live through the death of our parents.  This is not something we can avoid because that is the circle of life.  Even though we know this is something that is unavoidable, nothing can really prepare us for when that day comes, especially when we lose our first parent.  As kids, we see our parents as our steadfast, always there, the people we can count on no matter what, and the one we expect to be there when life hits us with the low points.  Our parents, as much as we may not want to admit it when we are young,…

If we are totally honest with ourselves, this question of are we good enough has entered all of our minds at least once in our lives.  Actually, more than once.  It is a basic question but it can lead to great enlightenment through self reflection or it can take us down a dark path to a place of doubt that can do more harm than good.  I can not count the number of times this question has entered my own mind.  As a child I remember asking myself this many times.  As a young adult navigating the choppy waters of high school and then college this question entered my mind…

Thanksgiving is a time where we gather together with family and friends to celebrate the anniversary of the first Thanksgiving diner.  How many of us stop for a moment to think of what we are thankful for in our lives?  This seems like a simple question but if we had to name the things we are thankful for how many of us could easily come up with a short list?  For several years now I have made it an annual tradition to post to Facebook each day something I am thankful for during the entire month of November.  In the beginning the things I am thankful for are easy to…

When I began thinking about starting a blog, this was what I had planned to make my first blog post.  You see, several years ago I decided to start writing a book about, well you guessed it, life experiences and how they are valuable life lessons. My plan was to take a different event in my life as a chapter and explain the event, how I handled it and the lessons I took away from it as a guide to how to handle life.  I thought that by sharing my stories that this might help others going through the same things to feel like they were not alone and if…

This was not what I planned to write my first blog about but, as a former teacher, I am taking this as a teachable moment.  This Saturday, our country saw hatred insert its evil into a peaceful Shabbat morning where members of the Jewish Community of the The Tree of Life had gathered to worship and celebrate a life event of a new baby.  Hatred is nothing new to the 21st Century let alone the United States.  Hatred has been in existence for centuries and it is fed by the ignorance of those who believe it the ignorance of what they are taught and exposed to.  Sometimes this ignorance is…

There are points in our life's journey when we begin to questions whether we are traveling on the tracks we are meant to stay on or is it time to change tracks at the switch yard. The answer to this question may not be an easy one to make and we begin to ask ourselves how do I know what is the right decision? Many of us go through our lives on auto pilot, ignoring the signs that are raised that are meant to make us take notice and revaluate our journey to see if we missed our stop to change tracks and go in a new direction. For some,…

Each of us has had those moments in our lives where things just keep happening and we feel like the tide is rising and we are going to be in over our heads. It is the worst feeling in the world especially when there appears to be no plug to pull to let the water resend. It is in these moments we feel alone, scared and, in some cases, desperate. So how do we survive the rising tide and keep our heads above water? Unfortunately, there is no perfect answer. All we can do is find a way to not let the water take us under. I started thinking about…

Dance has been a central part of my life for as long as I can remember but it has become my life line for much of my adult life. I started dancing when I was 2 years old when my mom signed me up for dance classes. Little did I know that she was giving me the greatest coping method I could ever ask for. My early years in dance were spent learning dance routines to be performed for end of the year recitals and then later for competition. It was not until I started studying dance at college that I realized the power of the art form I had…

So many times we tell ourselves that we will "do it tomorrow" but what we fail to remember is that tomorrow is not promised. Since this is the last post for 2018, I thought it was appropriate to think for a minute, what if tomorrow never comes? How many things would we miss out on because we said we would do it tomorrow? When I think back on my own life there are many missed opportunities because I kept telling myself I would do it tomorrow, next week, next month or next year. Some of those missed opportunities I looked back on with regret and realized that I took for…

As this year is coming to an end, many of us begin thinking of what we want the new year to have in store of us. Many people start their new year resolutions and are waiting to get started once the new year is here. But I ask myself, why do we value these goals so much? Is it that we believe that only when the new year begins that we can set these goals that we will follow this year unlike years past where they have been forgotten as the year progresses forward? Or, is it the promise that a new something holds for us - hope. For many…

We all know that one day we will have to live through the death of our parents.  This is not something we can avoid because that is the circle of life.  Even though we know this is something that is unavoidable, nothing can really prepare us for when that day comes, especially when we lose our first parent.  As kids, we see our parents as our steadfast, always there, the people we can count on no matter what, and the one we expect to be there when life hits us with the low points.  Our parents, as much as we may not want to admit it when we are young,…

If we are totally honest with ourselves, this question of are we good enough has entered all of our minds at least once in our lives.  Actually, more than once.  It is a basic question but it can lead to great enlightenment through self reflection or it can take us down a dark path to a place of doubt that can do more harm than good.  I can not count the number of times this question has entered my own mind.  As a child I remember asking myself this many times.  As a young adult navigating the choppy waters of high school and then college this question entered my mind…

Thanksgiving is a time where we gather together with family and friends to celebrate the anniversary of the first Thanksgiving diner.  How many of us stop for a moment to think of what we are thankful for in our lives?  This seems like a simple question but if we had to name the things we are thankful for how many of us could easily come up with a short list?  For several years now I have made it an annual tradition to post to Facebook each day something I am thankful for during the entire month of November.  In the beginning the things I am thankful for are easy to…

When I began thinking about starting a blog, this was what I had planned to make my first blog post.  You see, several years ago I decided to start writing a book about, well you guessed it, life experiences and how they are valuable life lessons. My plan was to take a different event in my life as a chapter and explain the event, how I handled it and the lessons I took away from it as a guide to how to handle life.  I thought that by sharing my stories that this might help others going through the same things to feel like they were not alone and if…

This was not what I planned to write my first blog about but, as a former teacher, I am taking this as a teachable moment.  This Saturday, our country saw hatred insert its evil into a peaceful Shabbat morning where members of the Jewish Community of the The Tree of Life had gathered to worship and celebrate a life event of a new baby.  Hatred is nothing new to the 21st Century let alone the United States.  Hatred has been in existence for centuries and it is fed by the ignorance of those who believe it the ignorance of what they are taught and exposed to.  Sometimes this ignorance is…

There are points in our life's journey when we begin to questions whether we are traveling on the tracks we are meant to stay on or is it time to change tracks at the switch yard. The answer to this question may not be an easy one to make and we begin to ask ourselves how do I know what is the right decision? Many of us go through our lives on auto pilot, ignoring the signs that are raised that are meant to make us take notice and revaluate our journey to see if we missed our stop to change tracks and go in a new direction. For some,…

Each of us has had those moments in our lives where things just keep happening and we feel like the tide is rising and we are going to be in over our heads. It is the worst feeling in the world especially when there appears to be no plug to pull to let the water resend. It is in these moments we feel alone, scared and, in some cases, desperate. So how do we survive the rising tide and keep our heads above water? Unfortunately, there is no perfect answer. All we can do is find a way to not let the water take us under. I started thinking about…

Dance has been a central part of my life for as long as I can remember but it has become my life line for much of my adult life. I started dancing when I was 2 years old when my mom signed me up for dance classes. Little did I know that she was giving me the greatest coping method I could ever ask for. My early years in dance were spent learning dance routines to be performed for end of the year recitals and then later for competition. It was not until I started studying dance at college that I realized the power of the art form I had…

So many times we tell ourselves that we will "do it tomorrow" but what we fail to remember is that tomorrow is not promised. Since this is the last post for 2018, I thought it was appropriate to think for a minute, what if tomorrow never comes? How many things would we miss out on because we said we would do it tomorrow? When I think back on my own life there are many missed opportunities because I kept telling myself I would do it tomorrow, next week, next month or next year. Some of those missed opportunities I looked back on with regret and realized that I took for…

As this year is coming to an end, many of us begin thinking of what we want the new year to have in store of us. Many people start their new year resolutions and are waiting to get started once the new year is here. But I ask myself, why do we value these goals so much? Is it that we believe that only when the new year begins that we can set these goals that we will follow this year unlike years past where they have been forgotten as the year progresses forward? Or, is it the promise that a new something holds for us - hope. For many…

We all know that one day we will have to live through the death of our parents.  This is not something we can avoid because that is the circle of life.  Even though we know this is something that is unavoidable, nothing can really prepare us for when that day comes, especially when we lose our first parent.  As kids, we see our parents as our steadfast, always there, the people we can count on no matter what, and the one we expect to be there when life hits us with the low points.  Our parents, as much as we may not want to admit it when we are young,…

If we are totally honest with ourselves, this question of are we good enough has entered all of our minds at least once in our lives.  Actually, more than once.  It is a basic question but it can lead to great enlightenment through self reflection or it can take us down a dark path to a place of doubt that can do more harm than good.  I can not count the number of times this question has entered my own mind.  As a child I remember asking myself this many times.  As a young adult navigating the choppy waters of high school and then college this question entered my mind…

Thanksgiving is a time where we gather together with family and friends to celebrate the anniversary of the first Thanksgiving diner.  How many of us stop for a moment to think of what we are thankful for in our lives?  This seems like a simple question but if we had to name the things we are thankful for how many of us could easily come up with a short list?  For several years now I have made it an annual tradition to post to Facebook each day something I am thankful for during the entire month of November.  In the beginning the things I am thankful for are easy to…

When I began thinking about starting a blog, this was what I had planned to make my first blog post.  You see, several years ago I decided to start writing a book about, well you guessed it, life experiences and how they are valuable life lessons. My plan was to take a different event in my life as a chapter and explain the event, how I handled it and the lessons I took away from it as a guide to how to handle life.  I thought that by sharing my stories that this might help others going through the same things to feel like they were not alone and if…

This was not what I planned to write my first blog about but, as a former teacher, I am taking this as a teachable moment.  This Saturday, our country saw hatred insert its evil into a peaceful Shabbat morning where members of the Jewish Community of the The Tree of Life had gathered to worship and celebrate a life event of a new baby.  Hatred is nothing new to the 21st Century let alone the United States.  Hatred has been in existence for centuries and it is fed by the ignorance of those who believe it the ignorance of what they are taught and exposed to.  Sometimes this ignorance is…

There are points in our life's journey when we begin to questions whether we are traveling on the tracks we are meant to stay on or is it time to change tracks at the switch yard. The answer to this question may not be an easy one to make and we begin to ask ourselves how do I know what is the right decision? Many of us go through our lives on auto pilot, ignoring the signs that are raised that are meant to make us take notice and revaluate our journey to see if we missed our stop to change tracks and go in a new direction. For some,…

Each of us has had those moments in our lives where things just keep happening and we feel like the tide is rising and we are going to be in over our heads. It is the worst feeling in the world especially when there appears to be no plug to pull to let the water resend. It is in these moments we feel alone, scared and, in some cases, desperate. So how do we survive the rising tide and keep our heads above water? Unfortunately, there is no perfect answer. All we can do is find a way to not let the water take us under. I started thinking about…

Dance has been a central part of my life for as long as I can remember but it has become my life line for much of my adult life. I started dancing when I was 2 years old when my mom signed me up for dance classes. Little did I know that she was giving me the greatest coping method I could ever ask for. My early years in dance were spent learning dance routines to be performed for end of the year recitals and then later for competition. It was not until I started studying dance at college that I realized the power of the art form I had…

So many times we tell ourselves that we will "do it tomorrow" but what we fail to remember is that tomorrow is not promised. Since this is the last post for 2018, I thought it was appropriate to think for a minute, what if tomorrow never comes? How many things would we miss out on because we said we would do it tomorrow? When I think back on my own life there are many missed opportunities because I kept telling myself I would do it tomorrow, next week, next month or next year. Some of those missed opportunities I looked back on with regret and realized that I took for…

As this year is coming to an end, many of us begin thinking of what we want the new year to have in store of us. Many people start their new year resolutions and are waiting to get started once the new year is here. But I ask myself, why do we value these goals so much? Is it that we believe that only when the new year begins that we can set these goals that we will follow this year unlike years past where they have been forgotten as the year progresses forward? Or, is it the promise that a new something holds for us - hope. For many…

We all know that one day we will have to live through the death of our parents.  This is not something we can avoid because that is the circle of life.  Even though we know this is something that is unavoidable, nothing can really prepare us for when that day comes, especially when we lose our first parent.  As kids, we see our parents as our steadfast, always there, the people we can count on no matter what, and the one we expect to be there when life hits us with the low points.  Our parents, as much as we may not want to admit it when we are young,…

If we are totally honest with ourselves, this question of are we good enough has entered all of our minds at least once in our lives.  Actually, more than once.  It is a basic question but it can lead to great enlightenment through self reflection or it can take us down a dark path to a place of doubt that can do more harm than good.  I can not count the number of times this question has entered my own mind.  As a child I remember asking myself this many times.  As a young adult navigating the choppy waters of high school and then college this question entered my mind…

Thanksgiving is a time where we gather together with family and friends to celebrate the anniversary of the first Thanksgiving diner.  How many of us stop for a moment to think of what we are thankful for in our lives?  This seems like a simple question but if we had to name the things we are thankful for how many of us could easily come up with a short list?  For several years now I have made it an annual tradition to post to Facebook each day something I am thankful for during the entire month of November.  In the beginning the things I am thankful for are easy to…

When I began thinking about starting a blog, this was what I had planned to make my first blog post.  You see, several years ago I decided to start writing a book about, well you guessed it, life experiences and how they are valuable life lessons. My plan was to take a different event in my life as a chapter and explain the event, how I handled it and the lessons I took away from it as a guide to how to handle life.  I thought that by sharing my stories that this might help others going through the same things to feel like they were not alone and if…

This was not what I planned to write my first blog about but, as a former teacher, I am taking this as a teachable moment.  This Saturday, our country saw hatred insert its evil into a peaceful Shabbat morning where members of the Jewish Community of the The Tree of Life had gathered to worship and celebrate a life event of a new baby.  Hatred is nothing new to the 21st Century let alone the United States.  Hatred has been in existence for centuries and it is fed by the ignorance of those who believe it the ignorance of what they are taught and exposed to.  Sometimes this ignorance is…

There are points in our life's journey when we begin to questions whether we are traveling on the tracks we are meant to stay on or is it time to change tracks at the switch yard. The answer to this question may not be an easy one to make and we begin to ask ourselves how do I know what is the right decision? Many of us go through our lives on auto pilot, ignoring the signs that are raised that are meant to make us take notice and revaluate our journey to see if we missed our stop to change tracks and go in a new direction. For some,…

Each of us has had those moments in our lives where things just keep happening and we feel like the tide is rising and we are going to be in over our heads. It is the worst feeling in the world especially when there appears to be no plug to pull to let the water resend. It is in these moments we feel alone, scared and, in some cases, desperate. So how do we survive the rising tide and keep our heads above water? Unfortunately, there is no perfect answer. All we can do is find a way to not let the water take us under. I started thinking about…

Dance has been a central part of my life for as long as I can remember but it has become my life line for much of my adult life. I started dancing when I was 2 years old when my mom signed me up for dance classes. Little did I know that she was giving me the greatest coping method I could ever ask for. My early years in dance were spent learning dance routines to be performed for end of the year recitals and then later for competition. It was not until I started studying dance at college that I realized the power of the art form I had…

So many times we tell ourselves that we will "do it tomorrow" but what we fail to remember is that tomorrow is not promised. Since this is the last post for 2018, I thought it was appropriate to think for a minute, what if tomorrow never comes? How many things would we miss out on because we said we would do it tomorrow? When I think back on my own life there are many missed opportunities because I kept telling myself I would do it tomorrow, next week, next month or next year. Some of those missed opportunities I looked back on with regret and realized that I took for…

As this year is coming to an end, many of us begin thinking of what we want the new year to have in store of us. Many people start their new year resolutions and are waiting to get started once the new year is here. But I ask myself, why do we value these goals so much? Is it that we believe that only when the new year begins that we can set these goals that we will follow this year unlike years past where they have been forgotten as the year progresses forward? Or, is it the promise that a new something holds for us - hope. For many…

We all know that one day we will have to live through the death of our parents.  This is not something we can avoid because that is the circle of life.  Even though we know this is something that is unavoidable, nothing can really prepare us for when that day comes, especially when we lose our first parent.  As kids, we see our parents as our steadfast, always there, the people we can count on no matter what, and the one we expect to be there when life hits us with the low points.  Our parents, as much as we may not want to admit it when we are young,…

If we are totally honest with ourselves, this question of are we good enough has entered all of our minds at least once in our lives.  Actually, more than once.  It is a basic question but it can lead to great enlightenment through self reflection or it can take us down a dark path to a place of doubt that can do more harm than good.  I can not count the number of times this question has entered my own mind.  As a child I remember asking myself this many times.  As a young adult navigating the choppy waters of high school and then college this question entered my mind…

Thanksgiving is a time where we gather together with family and friends to celebrate the anniversary of the first Thanksgiving diner.  How many of us stop for a moment to think of what we are thankful for in our lives?  This seems like a simple question but if we had to name the things we are thankful for how many of us could easily come up with a short list?  For several years now I have made it an annual tradition to post to Facebook each day something I am thankful for during the entire month of November.  In the beginning the things I am thankful for are easy to…

When I began thinking about starting a blog, this was what I had planned to make my first blog post.  You see, several years ago I decided to start writing a book about, well you guessed it, life experiences and how they are valuable life lessons. My plan was to take a different event in my life as a chapter and explain the event, how I handled it and the lessons I took away from it as a guide to how to handle life.  I thought that by sharing my stories that this might help others going through the same things to feel like they were not alone and if…

This was not what I planned to write my first blog about but, as a former teacher, I am taking this as a teachable moment.  This Saturday, our country saw hatred insert its evil into a peaceful Shabbat morning where members of the Jewish Community of the The Tree of Life had gathered to worship and celebrate a life event of a new baby.  Hatred is nothing new to the 21st Century let alone the United States.  Hatred has been in existence for centuries and it is fed by the ignorance of those who believe it the ignorance of what they are taught and exposed to.  Sometimes this ignorance is…

There are points in our life's journey when we begin to questions whether we are traveling on the tracks we are meant to stay on or is it time to change tracks at the switch yard. The answer to this question may not be an easy one to make and we begin to ask ourselves how do I know what is the right decision? Many of us go through our lives on auto pilot, ignoring the signs that are raised that are meant to make us take notice and revaluate our journey to see if we missed our stop to change tracks and go in a new direction. For some,…

Each of us has had those moments in our lives where things just keep happening and we feel like the tide is rising and we are going to be in over our heads. It is the worst feeling in the world especially when there appears to be no plug to pull to let the water resend. It is in these moments we feel alone, scared and, in some cases, desperate. So how do we survive the rising tide and keep our heads above water? Unfortunately, there is no perfect answer. All we can do is find a way to not let the water take us under. I started thinking about…

Dance has been a central part of my life for as long as I can remember but it has become my life line for much of my adult life. I started dancing when I was 2 years old when my mom signed me up for dance classes. Little did I know that she was giving me the greatest coping method I could ever ask for. My early years in dance were spent learning dance routines to be performed for end of the year recitals and then later for competition. It was not until I started studying dance at college that I realized the power of the art form I had…

So many times we tell ourselves that we will "do it tomorrow" but what we fail to remember is that tomorrow is not promised. Since this is the last post for 2018, I thought it was appropriate to think for a minute, what if tomorrow never comes? How many things would we miss out on because we said we would do it tomorrow? When I think back on my own life there are many missed opportunities because I kept telling myself I would do it tomorrow, next week, next month or next year. Some of those missed opportunities I looked back on with regret and realized that I took for…

As this year is coming to an end, many of us begin thinking of what we want the new year to have in store of us. Many people start their new year resolutions and are waiting to get started once the new year is here. But I ask myself, why do we value these goals so much? Is it that we believe that only when the new year begins that we can set these goals that we will follow this year unlike years past where they have been forgotten as the year progresses forward? Or, is it the promise that a new something holds for us - hope. For many…

We all know that one day we will have to live through the death of our parents.  This is not something we can avoid because that is the circle of life.  Even though we know this is something that is unavoidable, nothing can really prepare us for when that day comes, especially when we lose our first parent.  As kids, we see our parents as our steadfast, always there, the people we can count on no matter what, and the one we expect to be there when life hits us with the low points.  Our parents, as much as we may not want to admit it when we are young,…

If we are totally honest with ourselves, this question of are we good enough has entered all of our minds at least once in our lives.  Actually, more than once.  It is a basic question but it can lead to great enlightenment through self reflection or it can take us down a dark path to a place of doubt that can do more harm than good.  I can not count the number of times this question has entered my own mind.  As a child I remember asking myself this many times.  As a young adult navigating the choppy waters of high school and then college this question entered my mind…

Thanksgiving is a time where we gather together with family and friends to celebrate the anniversary of the first Thanksgiving diner.  How many of us stop for a moment to think of what we are thankful for in our lives?  This seems like a simple question but if we had to name the things we are thankful for how many of us could easily come up with a short list?  For several years now I have made it an annual tradition to post to Facebook each day something I am thankful for during the entire month of November.  In the beginning the things I am thankful for are easy to…

When I began thinking about starting a blog, this was what I had planned to make my first blog post.  You see, several years ago I decided to start writing a book about, well you guessed it, life experiences and how they are valuable life lessons. My plan was to take a different event in my life as a chapter and explain the event, how I handled it and the lessons I took away from it as a guide to how to handle life.  I thought that by sharing my stories that this might help others going through the same things to feel like they were not alone and if…

This was not what I planned to write my first blog about but, as a former teacher, I am taking this as a teachable moment.  This Saturday, our country saw hatred insert its evil into a peaceful Shabbat morning where members of the Jewish Community of the The Tree of Life had gathered to worship and celebrate a life event of a new baby.  Hatred is nothing new to the 21st Century let alone the United States.  Hatred has been in existence for centuries and it is fed by the ignorance of those who believe it the ignorance of what they are taught and exposed to.  Sometimes this ignorance is…

There are points in our life's journey when we begin to questions whether we are traveling on the tracks we are meant to stay on or is it time to change tracks at the switch yard. The answer to this question may not be an easy one to make and we begin to ask ourselves how do I know what is the right decision? Many of us go through our lives on auto pilot, ignoring the signs that are raised that are meant to make us take notice and revaluate our journey to see if we missed our stop to change tracks and go in a new direction. For some,…

Each of us has had those moments in our lives where things just keep happening and we feel like the tide is rising and we are going to be in over our heads. It is the worst feeling in the world especially when there appears to be no plug to pull to let the water resend. It is in these moments we feel alone, scared and, in some cases, desperate. So how do we survive the rising tide and keep our heads above water? Unfortunately, there is no perfect answer. All we can do is find a way to not let the water take us under. I started thinking about…

Dance has been a central part of my life for as long as I can remember but it has become my life line for much of my adult life. I started dancing when I was 2 years old when my mom signed me up for dance classes. Little did I know that she was giving me the greatest coping method I could ever ask for. My early years in dance were spent learning dance routines to be performed for end of the year recitals and then later for competition. It was not until I started studying dance at college that I realized the power of the art form I had…

So many times we tell ourselves that we will "do it tomorrow" but what we fail to remember is that tomorrow is not promised. Since this is the last post for 2018, I thought it was appropriate to think for a minute, what if tomorrow never comes? How many things would we miss out on because we said we would do it tomorrow? When I think back on my own life there are many missed opportunities because I kept telling myself I would do it tomorrow, next week, next month or next year. Some of those missed opportunities I looked back on with regret and realized that I took for…

As this year is coming to an end, many of us begin thinking of what we want the new year to have in store of us. Many people start their new year resolutions and are waiting to get started once the new year is here. But I ask myself, why do we value these goals so much? Is it that we believe that only when the new year begins that we can set these goals that we will follow this year unlike years past where they have been forgotten as the year progresses forward? Or, is it the promise that a new something holds for us - hope. For many…

We all know that one day we will have to live through the death of our parents.  This is not something we can avoid because that is the circle of life.  Even though we know this is something that is unavoidable, nothing can really prepare us for when that day comes, especially when we lose our first parent.  As kids, we see our parents as our steadfast, always there, the people we can count on no matter what, and the one we expect to be there when life hits us with the low points.  Our parents, as much as we may not want to admit it when we are young,…

If we are totally honest with ourselves, this question of are we good enough has entered all of our minds at least once in our lives.  Actually, more than once.  It is a basic question but it can lead to great enlightenment through self reflection or it can take us down a dark path to a place of doubt that can do more harm than good.  I can not count the number of times this question has entered my own mind.  As a child I remember asking myself this many times.  As a young adult navigating the choppy waters of high school and then college this question entered my mind…

Thanksgiving is a time where we gather together with family and friends to celebrate the anniversary of the first Thanksgiving diner.  How many of us stop for a moment to think of what we are thankful for in our lives?  This seems like a simple question but if we had to name the things we are thankful for how many of us could easily come up with a short list?  For several years now I have made it an annual tradition to post to Facebook each day something I am thankful for during the entire month of November.  In the beginning the things I am thankful for are easy to…

When I began thinking about starting a blog, this was what I had planned to make my first blog post.  You see, several years ago I decided to start writing a book about, well you guessed it, life experiences and how they are valuable life lessons. My plan was to take a different event in my life as a chapter and explain the event, how I handled it and the lessons I took away from it as a guide to how to handle life.  I thought that by sharing my stories that this might help others going through the same things to feel like they were not alone and if…

This was not what I planned to write my first blog about but, as a former teacher, I am taking this as a teachable moment.  This Saturday, our country saw hatred insert its evil into a peaceful Shabbat morning where members of the Jewish Community of the The Tree of Life had gathered to worship and celebrate a life event of a new baby.  Hatred is nothing new to the 21st Century let alone the United States.  Hatred has been in existence for centuries and it is fed by the ignorance of those who believe it the ignorance of what they are taught and exposed to.  Sometimes this ignorance is…

There are points in our life's journey when we begin to questions whether we are traveling on the tracks we are meant to stay on or is it time to change tracks at the switch yard. The answer to this question may not be an easy one to make and we begin to ask ourselves how do I know what is the right decision? Many of us go through our lives on auto pilot, ignoring the signs that are raised that are meant to make us take notice and revaluate our journey to see if we missed our stop to change tracks and go in a new direction. For some,…

Each of us has had those moments in our lives where things just keep happening and we feel like the tide is rising and we are going to be in over our heads. It is the worst feeling in the world especially when there appears to be no plug to pull to let the water resend. It is in these moments we feel alone, scared and, in some cases, desperate. So how do we survive the rising tide and keep our heads above water? Unfortunately, there is no perfect answer. All we can do is find a way to not let the water take us under. I started thinking about…

Dance has been a central part of my life for as long as I can remember but it has become my life line for much of my adult life. I started dancing when I was 2 years old when my mom signed me up for dance classes. Little did I know that she was giving me the greatest coping method I could ever ask for. My early years in dance were spent learning dance routines to be performed for end of the year recitals and then later for competition. It was not until I started studying dance at college that I realized the power of the art form I had…

So many times we tell ourselves that we will "do it tomorrow" but what we fail to remember is that tomorrow is not promised. Since this is the last post for 2018, I thought it was appropriate to think for a minute, what if tomorrow never comes? How many things would we miss out on because we said we would do it tomorrow? When I think back on my own life there are many missed opportunities because I kept telling myself I would do it tomorrow, next week, next month or next year. Some of those missed opportunities I looked back on with regret and realized that I took for…

As this year is coming to an end, many of us begin thinking of what we want the new year to have in store of us. Many people start their new year resolutions and are waiting to get started once the new year is here. But I ask myself, why do we value these goals so much? Is it that we believe that only when the new year begins that we can set these goals that we will follow this year unlike years past where they have been forgotten as the year progresses forward? Or, is it the promise that a new something holds for us - hope. For many…

We all know that one day we will have to live through the death of our parents.  This is not something we can avoid because that is the circle of life.  Even though we know this is something that is unavoidable, nothing can really prepare us for when that day comes, especially when we lose our first parent.  As kids, we see our parents as our steadfast, always there, the people we can count on no matter what, and the one we expect to be there when life hits us with the low points.  Our parents, as much as we may not want to admit it when we are young,…

If we are totally honest with ourselves, this question of are we good enough has entered all of our minds at least once in our lives.  Actually, more than once.  It is a basic question but it can lead to great enlightenment through self reflection or it can take us down a dark path to a place of doubt that can do more harm than good.  I can not count the number of times this question has entered my own mind.  As a child I remember asking myself this many times.  As a young adult navigating the choppy waters of high school and then college this question entered my mind…

Thanksgiving is a time where we gather together with family and friends to celebrate the anniversary of the first Thanksgiving diner.  How many of us stop for a moment to think of what we are thankful for in our lives?  This seems like a simple question but if we had to name the things we are thankful for how many of us could easily come up with a short list?  For several years now I have made it an annual tradition to post to Facebook each day something I am thankful for during the entire month of November.  In the beginning the things I am thankful for are easy to…

When I began thinking about starting a blog, this was what I had planned to make my first blog post.  You see, several years ago I decided to start writing a book about, well you guessed it, life experiences and how they are valuable life lessons. My plan was to take a different event in my life as a chapter and explain the event, how I handled it and the lessons I took away from it as a guide to how to handle life.  I thought that by sharing my stories that this might help others going through the same things to feel like they were not alone and if…

This was not what I planned to write my first blog about but, as a former teacher, I am taking this as a teachable moment.  This Saturday, our country saw hatred insert its evil into a peaceful Shabbat morning where members of the Jewish Community of the The Tree of Life had gathered to worship and celebrate a life event of a new baby.  Hatred is nothing new to the 21st Century let alone the United States.  Hatred has been in existence for centuries and it is fed by the ignorance of those who believe it the ignorance of what they are taught and exposed to.  Sometimes this ignorance is…