Right, Happy, or Kind?   My boy, my son—my beloved Emmett, is heading off to college in just six weeks. He’ll be going to Wesleyan University in Middletown, Connecticut.   I had been very upset about him leaving—until I had this realization: The whole point of this 18-year experiment has been to launch him—you don’t […]

  As I approach our parked 2010 blue Subaru Forester, I hand the remote and key from my left hand to my right.  Hardly thinking or noticing my actions, I insert the metal key into the door lock and twist. I feel the mechanism turn. I pull out the key, open the door, get in,

Beloved reader, a few weeks ago—and again last week—I asked you to compare the responses of two imaginary friends, Georgia and Clarence. In their first tale, we learned the wisdom of kindness/non-judgment over criticism—making the vow to be more Georgia, less Clarence. Their second, a dinner scene, showed: we get more of what we want

Every time. Every time I go to the airport, I have a minor panic.  I don’t have my wallet! (It’s in my pocket.) My flight’s tomorrow! (Nope—it’s today.) The rental car company is going to charge me for gas because I didn’t get a receipt. (They didn’t.) I panic.Before every trip. Every time.It’s just what

A few weeks ago, I asked you to compare responses from two friends, Georgia and Clarence. Let’s revisit: One day, Georgia and Clarence invite me to go jogging with them. At the meeting spot, Georgia beams with excitement and says, “Come on, let’s go!” Clarence, on the other hand, scolds: “Those shoes are all wrong.

Beloved, I’m sitting in my office, writing these very words that you are reading. As I don’t have a particular topic in mind, I’m just starting by writing these words. It gets the juices flowing. If the past is any guide, chances are you won’t read what I’m typing in right now. Writers refer to

I want to get away, but it feels rude—that whole workplace decorum thing. Still, I can’t shake the urge to leave. I want to go up to my first-floor classroom and leave her talking to her stupid self in the stairwell. “Everything has a silver lining,” she says, “You have to realize that, Brian.” “Please,

Imagine that I have two friends, Georgia and Clarence. One day, they invite me to go jogging with them. At the meeting spot, Georgia beams, “Come on, let’s go!” Clarence, however, scolds: “Those shoes are all wrong. You need real jogging shorts. And your socks? No support at all.” I’ll let you guess which one

“dad” “please” “sign me out” “for 4th period” The above series of texts pop onto my phone in immediate succession late Thursday afternoon as I sit in my basement home office. They are from my youngest—the one who changed her contact name in my phone to “Annie, favorite child.” She wants me to sign her

Download PDF (free) Rabbi Brian’s Notes About Mourning* – Simple Definitions – * Grief is the final stage of love. It is love with no place left to go. * – Idiosyncratic – *Don’t worry about what you think you ought to be doing. Grief is idiosyncratic—it shows up in its own way, on its