Two Lightning Strikes

One week apart, two freak accidents, both families nearly wiped out. 

Both touched me. 

Exactly one week ago, I learned and wished condolences to the man in synagogue who lost his wife, youngest son, and mother-in-law in the Mexico tourist bus accident. 

Today–7 days later, a neighbor comes up to me and tells me she’s going to the funeral for her daughter, son-in-law and three children killed in the Costa Rica plane crash this week, and I wished her that G-d have mercy. 

Like two lightning strikes–not a coincidence (I don’t believe in that).

I believe more that it is a warning, and it is really frightening.

I pray that G-d should have mercy on all of us. 

Please G-d, Save Us. 
Please G-d, Save Us. Please G-d, Help Us To Succeed. 
Please G-d, Help Us To Succeed. 

Life truly hangs by a thin thread.

The time period between my meeting the man and women from these two families–7 days–represents both life and death–it is both the number of days of “Sheva Brachot” (days of celebration for a bride and groom) and the number of says of “Shiva: (mourning when someone dies)

We need to be committed to doing good in this world and in His name.

— Repentance, charity, and prayer.

All of us must do our best to serve G-d and always do right with integrity.

G-d should defeat evil, and He should have mercy on his faithful children, so that He turns mourning into celebration and blessings. 😉

(Source Photo: here with attribution to kristendawn, and interesting that it is from Costa Rica)

Body of Armor

So had some disappointments recently.

Nothing terrible (and for that I am so grateful). 

Just life happening. 

Have to fail and fail and fail {more}…in order to get to that single success. 

Along the way, sometimes it feels like arrows going through your body.

Or as someone said to Tina Fey in a movie we watched yesterday:

“Hearts and minds, the two best places to shoot someone.”

Is that funny? 

Ok, now I know that I am feeling a little down, because even that made me smirk but not fully smile. 

It’s okay.

Life is a series of peaks and valleys. 

Time to climb that next peak. 

I will do it with body armor on and solid. 

Won’t let those arrows pierce me, while I ascend.

I am trying, and learning and growing along the way.

If I am to fall, Hashem, in mercy, pick me up that I may keep doing my mission you have for me in life, so that I may ultimately prevail toward the destiny only that You know and have planned for me, for the good. 😉

(Source Photo: Andy Blumenthal)

Running With Parachute

So I took this photo at the athletic field. 

This guy was running.

But he had a parachute tied to his buttocks. 

A little extra resistance to get into shape. 

While a parachute can be helpful (in fact lifesaving) if you’re jumping from an airplane.

It can also be a hinderance if your trying to run across a big open field as fast as you can. 

Parachute + Air = Resistance. 

I asked the guy how much this running parachute cost and he told me it was about $30.

Not bad to vary up the workout a little and pull not just yourself, but an entire airstream with you. 

It’s interesting how people wanting to excel look for ways to improve their game by challenging themselves.

As if running lightening fast in the hot sun wasn’t hard enough.

Let’s add a parachute or maybe a bag of heavy rocks to the mix.

The problem is that while the training can be good now, we may pay a physical price for it later in life. 

He/she-man can take a lot of physical abuse, but maybe there is also long term wear and tear on the body. 

I think perhaps, the best outcome from challenging your body and soul is the inner strength you get from determination and exercise of your will to succeed. 😉

(Source Photo: Andy Blumenthal)

The Games Organizations Play

So HP, under Meg Whitman, is breaking up into a PC/printing
company and an enterprise products and services firm.

Um…well of course it’s the right thing to do to focus each and release the
great value of these two companies.

Only, just a few years ago, under Carly Fiorina, HP a
printer and enterprise products company combined with Compaq, a PC company, in
order to gain the size and clout to succeed in the ever-competitive technology
marketplace.

The B.S. of corporate America—everything and the opposite–to
try and do something, almost anything, to try and raise the share prices of those
strategically stalled companies.

From Meg Whitman, CEO of HP:

– October 2011–“Together we are stronger!”

– Then today, 3 years later–“Being nimble is the only path
to winning.”

Yeah, whatever.

Merge, split—wash, rinse, repeat…fool the fools.

HP is still HP—especially compared to Apple, Amazon, Google,
and even now Lenovo. 😉

 

(Source Photo: here with attribution to Angie Harms)