What parsha is it anyway???

Parshat Vayshev:

What happens in this parsha? A lot does so I'm not going to attempt to summarize all of it. B'H, I've reached a point in my learning where I now remember the storyline of the parsha without needing to learn the pasukim, not that learning the pasukim is not beneficial.

So, after glossing over the events in the parsha a plain and simple thought struck me, WE'RE IN OLAM HAZEH!!! We're not in gan eden. Now, i know that everyone knows this, and that this fact is not a revolutionary idea. However, i feel that many times I lose focus on this simple fact. How do I do that? I do this by thinking that 'big is better' and that, therefore, I should aim to get the newest models available. I can lose focus by concentrating on the gashmiut that i DON"T have (B"H) and then by getting upset and trying to attain it. In this way, I treat olam hazeh like olam haba and lose track of my tachlis in this world.

B'H, this parsha has reminded me and taught me to keep focus. Yes I don't have a car, yes I"m not rich with lots of money. But what do I have? I have the ability to pay for post-secondary education (with the help of student loans ;-p) I have the ability to attempt to get myself out of Vancouver and into Toronto. I have the ability to contact my friends, half way across the globe, and I have the ability to make a difference in children's lives and teach them Torah once a week....

I could go on. Rabbi Meisels taught me that I have a lot, if only I tilt my head away from the negative and focus on the positive I'll be able to see it all.

Yes, Yaakov (Yisroel) had a hard life, we all have our nissoynot and pekala, and we can understand why he wanted to 'settle'. But Hashem told him clearly that is not his tachlis and that he will 'settle' in olam haba.

May we all be zoche to settle in olam haba with tova and concentrate our current existence as being ovdei Hashem.


Shabbat Shalom.

Sarah Rutti

Application in Process...

I have officially started the process of applying to Universities. With my second year at Langara College coming to an end, the time has come. One small step for man... with thousands more to follow. We'll wait and see what happens, as I continue to send in the required documents to complete the process.

Good Night.

The end of the week!

YEAH!

Friday is here, well basically. This day marks the end of a long journey, and the beginning of a fast approaching vacation!

"And the crowd goes wild, YEAH YEAH!!!!"

Can you feel my enthusiasm?

So, with that said, I only have a math assignment for monday! Oh, how relieved a I feel! B"H! (Thank G-D) For those of you who are still stuck with in the project and essay deadline trap, don't worry, it will soon be over!

We're not going to think about finals now, though. That amount of worrying has it's time and place.

So, good luck to all of you. Thank you for listening and keep up the cheer! We can pull through this!

Shabbat Shalom.

School...

It's hard to keep motivation all the way to the end. I've passed the 2 week mark till the end of classes. After investing for the past three months, I'm finding it difficult to keep plugging into everything... But I must do it, and I must to well. With that said, I'm gonna study for my french Oral Exam that is transpiring on Thursday. Have a great day y'all.

I"m been tagged for 7 random tings about me...

Okay I've been tagged by Jelaina to post 7 random facts about myself.

The Rules:
1. Link to your tagger and post these rules.
2. Share 7 facts about yourself: some random, some weird.
3. Tag 7 people at the end of your post and list their names and link to them.
4. Let them know they've been tagged by leaving a comment at their blog.

Well, since I really don't know who my readers are, I"m going to make this a little random and impersonal. Those of you who know me well know this stuff already and much more. So here goes:

1. I'm passionate about anything I believe in. This includes facts about how the world works and so on. However, I've learned to keep my peace during classes that bring up controversial subjects. That doesn't mean, though, that I don't feel strongly about my believes, I'm just more careful about when I let then known.
   
2. I love how detailed our world is. This includes the veins in our bodies to the veins on a leaf. I love the way the seasons are run and the way nature takes it's place. I find being encompassed in nature very peaceful and calming.
   
3. I love reading, literature is my escape. When the day is too stressful I really enjoy picking up a fiction novel and reading. However, I can't stand romance and baseless plots. I need books that engage my intellect. Such as mysteries and some fantasies. The hard part is finding a good novel that isn't focused around relations (sex.)
   
4. I'm close to a perfectionist and control freak. However, as mentioned above, I've some a long way in working on those characteristics. I usually use them to get homework done and enjoy my work. When I was 7 I used to ask my mother for the detailed directions about how we were going to get somewhere. These details had to includes all streets and turn we were going to make. Thank G-D I don't do that anymore. But I had to work really hard to stop :-S
   
5. I believe that everyone one has a unique verity of abilities special prepared for them. That no one has ever or will have that unique blend ever again. It is for that reason that I strongly think that everyone has the ability to make a difference in his or her life. And the difference doesn't have to be acknowledged world wide for it to be a momentous difference. The fact that I can change one person's life, let a lone my own, is an amazing concept. If I utilize me abilities I can make a difference to every person I meet.
   
6. I love to clean up and organize things, it has to do with being a perfectionist. I like the feeling of accomplishing something, and putting everything away in its place. I love the sight of clear counters and sparling floors.
   
7. I spend time working on characteristics. As mentioned above, I really try hard to make a difference with my life. I feel that if I'm not willing to change for the better, then I'll never end up being the best me I can be. I have a unique opportunity, to live my life with my situations and characteristics. We all have this individual opportunity.
   

I don't know if I can dig up 7 people:
MAK, SEP, Earlyriser, Calvin and Hobbes,

Ok, those are the only ones I could dig up....

It's really hard...

I was sitting in class today listening to the teacher speak about geological time scales and the creation of the earth...Of course, throughout his lecture I kept remembering how we know the world was created. >>That lead me to think about this AMAZING autobiography I heard, >>which inspired me to try to live each day closer to HaShem >>and then I *sighed*.

It had been one day since I listened to the autobiography and until I stepped into the outside world I was able to keep that feeling within me, to a high degree.
>> Then I was back outside, being tossed and turned by the currents of the wind and water... subject to weathering and erosion.

But I don't want to be made into a smooth stone, used to the tossing and turnings of the currents. I want to stay angled and coarse, aware of the currents and able to fight against them.

This is my hope, this is my path of survival. Because if I do allow myself to become smooth and spherical, then I will have lost myself to the tide.

B"H, that wont happen. I must stay sharp.

But how? What should I keep in my mind as I traverse the immense hallways and corridors? What can I do to keep my mind in FOCUS? Torah, mitzvout! KAVANA!

Shabbat in our week

http://www.efocus.com/images/focus.gif

Just to start off the week, I wanted to remind us, mostly myself, that shabbat is coming!

We should be zochei to live this week with the kavana that shabbat is coming closer and that every action we do can be elevated by it, when done with the proper kavana.

I learn Ahavas Chesed once a week and we've been learning how many of the actions we do regularly are chesed miztvout. All we're missing is the kavana while we preform that the action is a chesed and that we're doing it because it's a chesed ;-)

So, have a great mitzvah filled week. May we all have the proper kavana while we do our daily activities.

(Some examples are washing dishes, helping someone with the door, teaching people, car pools, and so on.)

second image from: http://ctyouth.net/images/focus.jpg