Ready for a quiz? Is the following news report true or false? A famous explorer just returned from his latest expedition with shocking news. He has located a remote and isolated island culture that generates electricity using the heat from nuclear reactors. What astounded him was that these islanders who had mastered nuclear...
I have written quite a bit lately about the children’s books I’ve been reading, appalled at how much of an agenda they contain. An article by Dave Seminera in the December 16, 2018 Wall Street Journal reminded me of another point. I don’t know who chose the title for his opinion piece, but it is...
A story from ancient Jewish wisdom tells of a traveller who came across an elderly man planting a carob tree. Since carob trees can take more than twenty years to bear fruit, the passer-by suggested that the man’s work was pointless; he would no longer be there to enjoy the tree’s fruit. The older man...
Is tithing still relevant today? Is it solely giving to the church that we attend every week or we can give to other needs (needy relatives, needy pastors from poor countries…) If we apportion the 10% to our church + needy relative + needy pastors, are we sinning against God? My husband gives to our...
In which countries is it easiest to form a new business? You’d think that with more than two-hundred years of entrepreneurial culture, the United States would rank fairly high. And we did. Until about 1962, starting a new business in the United States was quicker, cheaper, and easier than anywhere else. Not surprisingly, the country...
Hoop skirts and petticoats went out of style before my time as did butter churns. Nonetheless, I am two generations closer to a time when those items were in general use than my grandchildren are. And while I love sharing classic books with the young ones in my life, I also look out for writing...
Chanukah begins on the 25th day of the Hebrew month of Kislev and continues for eight days. Because its date depends on the lunar rather than the solar calendar, in some years, Chanukah overlaps with Thanksgiving while on others it coincides with Christmas. This year, the fifth day of Chanukah lines up with the anniversary...
I’m currently an AirBnB host to earn extra money (I don’t need the extra income). Recently AirBnB came out with a new policy not allowing Jews in the West Bank, or Judea and Samaria to rent out their homes. To me this seems like anti-Semitism and would like your advice on what to do? I’m...
We’re delighted to announce that Carola from Tacoma, WA was the winner of an Income Abundance Set in our Giving Tuesday raffle. We thank everyone who donated on that day (of course, we appreciate donations all year round!) for helping us to continue putting out Thought Tools, Ask the Rabbi, Susan’s Musings, podcasts, and our …
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John Steinbeck’s 1937 short novel, Of Mice and Men, always brings a lump to my throat. It tells the story of two migrant farm workers, George and Lennie, during the Depression. Attempting to summarize it here would be futile. It would also be a crime against great writing. If you’ve never read it, I recommend...
