by Adeena Schlussel on behalf of Daniel Lubetzky
Nick Kristof writes about Psychologist Jonathan Haidt of University of Virginia illustrates in his book, “The Happiness Hypothesis” that happiness is correlated with acts of kindness and that “altruism carries its own rewards”. One study showed that when researched encouraged their subjects to imagine giving charity, the part of the brain associated with eating or sexual pleasure lit up.
I just re-read an essay I wrote (as therapy, I guess) back on September 11, 2001 and a couple days after, trying to capture the thoughts and feelings of New Yorkers after the World Trade Center terrorist attack.
It is worth remembering what the city and its people went through.
It is worth honoring the heroes and the fallen.
And it is worth reflecting on how we can deny a victory to the terrorists, back then and today, not just by apprehending them, but also by the lives we lead and how we lead them.
The original essay, Etiquette and Resilience in the Face of Calamity, is in the PeaceWorks Foods archives. A copy is pasted below.
And the priestess spoke again and said:
Speak to us of Reason and Passion.And he answered, saying:
Your soul is oftentimes a battlefield, upon
which your reason and your judgment wage
war against your passion and your appetite.Would that I could be your peacemaker
in your soul, that I might turn the discord
and the rivalry of your elements into oneness and melody.But how shall I, unless you yourselves be
also the peacemakers, nay, the lovers of all your elements?Your reason and your passion are the rudder
and the sails of your seafaring soul.
If either your sails or your rudder be broken,
you can but toss and drift, or else be held at a standstill
in mid-seas.For reason, ruling alone, is a force confining;
and passion, unattended, is a flame that burns
to its own destruction.Therefore let your soul exalt your reason to the height of passion,
that it may sing;
And let it direct your passion with reason,
that your passion may live through its own daily resurrection,
and like the phoenix rise above it own ashes.I would have you consider your own judgement
and your appetite even as you would two
loved guests in your house.
Surely you wouldn’t honor one guest above the other;
for he who is more mindful of one loses
the love and the faith of both.Among the hills, when you sit in the cool
shade of the white poplars, sharing the peace
and serenity of distant fields and meadows
then let your heart say in silence,
"God rests in reason".And when the storm comes, and the mighty wind
shakes the forest, and thunder and lightning
proclaim the majesty of the sky, then let your heart
say in awe, "God moves in passion."And since you are a breath in God’s sphere,
and a leaf in God’s forest, you too
should rest in reason and move in passion.–Gibran Khalil Gibran, The Prophet, on Reason and Passion
(thanks to Uncle Jorge and Sioma Waisburd for sharing this)
by Kim Walker on behalf of Daniel Lubetzky
Nick Kristof examines the dangers of chemicals that we encounter in our daily lives, and it’s scary. The last paragraph of his article offers valuable advice for parents aiming to secure their home from such dangers.
FORTIS FORTUNA ADIUVAT
translation: Fortune favors the brave.
- Ancient Roman proverb (courtesy of Ian Fisher)
This interview mentions my uncle Larry Lubetzky - my Dad’s older brother. I recall how as a child my Dad recounted his liberation by American soldiers. It was many years later that I learned the platoon that rescued him was composed of all Asian-Americans - Japanese Americans to be specific.
A few weeks ago my sister uncovered an interview by the Yale Archives of my Dad, from 1987, which I am embarrassed I had never seen, sharing his life’s story, including the dark episode of Dachau. The video was dubbed into DVD and I made several hundred copies. If anyone wants one, please reply to this posting, or email me or call our office at +1 212 616 3006 x104 and I will gladly send you a copy - while supplies last.
With extremism being particularly rampant among some religious followers who become increasingly zealous about their convictions and practices, and with the cartoonish tensions created by black and white contrasts set out by desensitized uber-capitalism vs. new age parsimoniousness, I was struck by the depth and timeliness of these contrasting messages:
With regard to all human traits, the middle of the road is the right path. For example: Do not be hot-tempered, easily angered. Nor, on the other hand, should you be unfeeling like a corpse. Rather, take the middle of the road: keep an even disposition, reserving your anger for occasions when it is truly warranted. Similarly, do not cultivate a desire for luxuries; keep your eye fixed only on genuine necessities. In giving to others, do not hold back what you can afford, but do not give so lavishly that you yourself will be impoverished. Avoid both hysterical gaiety and somber dejection, and instead be calmly joyful always, showing a cheerful countenance. Act similarly with regard to all the dispositions. This is the path followed by the wise.
- Maimonides, 12th Century
And
…this path, the one that avoids extremes, is called the ‘path of God,’ and Abraham taught his descendants to follow it. Whoever follows it gains goodness and blessing, as it is said, "For I have known him, that he might command his children and those who follow him to keep the Lord’s path, doing justice and right, that the Lord may fulfill for Abraham the divine purpose (Genesis 18.19)."
The goal is not happiness. The goal is purpose. And from that purpose comes happiness.
- Linda Gallanter, at dinner, sharing that when raising children, giving them purpose is a much more effective way to make them fulfilled and happy in life (whereas worrying about them being ‘happy’ can yield spoiled or malcontent kids)
A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty.
- Winston Churchill
(as seen in http://ny-forum.com/)
