THOUGHT OF THE WEEK - 10.29.21

THOUGHT OF THE WEEK - 10.29.21

No alt text provided for this image

I was just reading Rabbi Jonathan Sacks' thoughts on the weekly Torah portion, where he suggests that based on the wisdom of Abraham, the number one attribute when looking for a significant other is civility (known in Hebrew as Chesed). I interpret this as meaning an act of service.?

To me, service is being kind, reaching out our hand, lending an ear, or performing a charitable act without the expectation of anything in return.?

Rabbi Sacks shares the story of Stephen Carter, a black professor who spoke of an act of civility that changed the course of his life. As a child, Stephen moved into an entirely white neighborhood of Washington DC and assumed when he arrived that the white neighbors would be mean, nasty, and unaccepting to him. Instead, a woman who was his neighbor named Sara Kestenbaum greeted him with a smile, welcomed him and his family to the neighborhood, and brought them snacks. This act of service changed the course of this man's life and of so many others by extension. I'm positive if you asked Sara if she did anything special, she would say no, she was just being of service.

I'm reminded of a story my brother-in-law shared with me about the former editor-in-chief of the Detroit Free Press. When his mother immigrated to the United States, she was a housekeeper for a Jewish family. This family lived in a large home in the center of the Jewish community, and the man of the house was the president of the local synagogue. The family went away the week before Christmas and planned to return on Christmas day, and the editor's mother decided to show her gratitude to the family and went out and bought a huge tree and decorated the outside of the house.

When the family came back, we can only imagine how horrified they were to see the Christmas decorations, and how fearful they were of what their neighbors would say. Yet, instead of yell at or rebuke the housekeeper, the owner of the house sat her down and gave her a $100 bonus (a huge sum in the 1950s), thanked her profusely for the beautiful gift, and then kindly explained that his religion didn't observe Christmas and that together they could take down the tree and decorations. Because of this act of kindness, her son (who grew up to be the editor-in-chief of the Detroit Free Press) became a great friend of the Jewish people.?

Simple acts of kindness are invaluable. When someone asks how I am doing and actually means it, and they take the time to hear my response, it truly means the world to me.?

What simple acts of kindness move you? Additionally, what does service--or civility-- mean to you?

This week, let's be mindful of how our actions affect?others. Let's be kind, loving, caring, and welcoming to all-- you not only can change a life, you can change the course of nature, itself.?

Accountability, Community, Unconditional Love

Asher

I want to remind all?of?you that you can hear more on my?podcast, Showing Up. We have lots?of?amazing shows with interesting guests on a variety?of?personal development topics. It would be great if you could also rate 5 stars, review and subscribe to?the?show.?https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/showing-up-with-asher-gottesman/id1489856285y?

No alt text provided for this image


要查看或添加评论,请登录

Asher Gottesman aka AsherG的更多文章

  • THOUGHT OF THE WEEK - 02.28.25

    THOUGHT OF THE WEEK - 02.28.25

    The antidote to sadness isn't happiness, it's joy; it's finding a way to celebrate the wins amongst the losses and…

  • THOUGHT OF THE WEEK - 02.14.25

    THOUGHT OF THE WEEK - 02.14.25

    Great leaders have many qualities, but humility is usually not one of them. With rare exceptions, they tend to be.

    1 条评论
  • THOUGHT OF THE WEEK - 02.05.25

    THOUGHT OF THE WEEK - 02.05.25

    It's so important that we take time to pause, reflect, decompress, and give our minds and souls time to rejuvenate…

  • THOUGHT OF THE WEEK - 01.31.25

    THOUGHT OF THE WEEK - 01.31.25

    What is the difference between joy and happiness? In the words of J.D.

  • THOUGHT OF THE WEEK - 01.24.25

    THOUGHT OF THE WEEK - 01.24.25

    If you seek sudden inspiration, then work at it every day for a year or a lifetime. That is how it comes.

  • THOUGHT OF THE WEEK - 01.17.25

    THOUGHT OF THE WEEK - 01.17.25

    The Torah shares a wild story of ten men, all of status, humility, and integrity. These men are respected by all as…

  • THOUGHT OF THE WEEK - 01.10.25

    THOUGHT OF THE WEEK - 01.10.25

    One of my favorite parts of Judaism is that it encourages us to question, to doubt, to grapple, to seek, and to find…

  • THOUGHT OF THE WEEK - 01.03.25

    THOUGHT OF THE WEEK - 01.03.25

    I dare say that we all want to know the future, what will be, how it will all turn out, and what our fortune is to be…

    1 条评论
  • THOUGHT OF THE WEEK - 12.27.24

    THOUGHT OF THE WEEK - 12.27.24

    R. Schneur Zalman of Liadi's Tanya said that if we change the way we think, we will change the way we feel.

  • THOUGHT OF THE WEEK - 12.13.24

    THOUGHT OF THE WEEK - 12.13.24

    "Sometimes the worst mistakes we make are when we project our feelings onto others" - Rabbi Jonathan Sacks Lately, I…

    1 条评论

社区洞察

其他会员也浏览了