LESSONS FROM THE EXODUS
IN TODAY’S WORLD 

On April 22^nd and 23^rd, Jews around the world are going to celebrate Passover. The events which took place sometime in the thirteenth century BCE (there are many theories among modern scholars about what happened and when). In the Torah the story of the Jewish Exodus from Egypt with their leader Moses was described in great detail. It is also stated that the great multitude of other people left along with millions of animals. Now try to imagine how the entire population of Los Angeles of about 3.822 million (in 2022) managed to leave Egypt and cross the Red Sea on foot and arrive at the desert and stay there for the next forty years.

So, the question is, why will Jews celebrate the events which took place so long ago and in a foreign land, on Monday and Tuesday? Followed by the next question, why is this an important today, besides just keeping the tradition? One of the most important parts of the celebration, is called the Seder (order), which is retelling the Story of the Exodus for the ears of young children. The story is about ten tribes whose father was Jacob, also known as Israel, who lived in Egypt for at least 215 years. They were cousins and, like all cousins, they differed from one another. Only after spending forty years in the desert together, away from their Egyptian oppressors, they became a nation. United to cross the Jordan River and to capture land which was promised to their forefathers as their homeland.

Getting together at the festive table to share food and drinks is a very good reminder that there are more things which unite us than separate. And this message is not only for Jews. In challenging times, only unity can help us to accomplish a better future for our children and this will depend on which story we are telling them.

Flower bouquets are the best way to bring beauty to the festive table, as the above three images can attest.

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WHAT IS TIME?

On a Saturday evening a few weeks ago, my wife Elfa reminded me that we would lose one hour of sleep that night because of the daylight-saving time switch. I went to sleep as usual at 10:30 PM and got up at 8 AM (which the day before was 7 AM. The only reason I noticed the time difference was because I had to change the time on some of the clocks.

But what is time? When I asked this question on-line, my iPhone not only gave me the answer, but also showed the correct time. Most of us know that “Time is relative”, which as Albert Einstein explained is, “The rate at which time passes depends on your (or mine) frame of reference”. And if you are looking for more information, check out theoretical physicist Brian Greene explaining “Time in 5 Levels of Difficulty” in this YouTube video. I stopped wearing a wristwatch a long time ago, since I have a clock on my iPhone, which is always in my pocket. There are also many sayings which answer the question what time is, like “Time is money” and “Lost time is never found again” and there are so many more.

If you would like to have a good time, you can find many of my timeless books on Amazon. Flower blooms can be a very good way to observe the results of the time change, like in these three magnolia flowers.

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The Sky’s the Limit

It was Miguel de Cervantes who wrote in Don Quixote in 1605, “No limit but the sky”. There are a number of variations of this phrase. I thought about it during our recent walk in Golden Gate Park. The sky was covered with clouds that looked like a herd of sheep. But it was an illusion, which can be seen when an airplane enters into the cloud only to emerge in the open space a few moments later.

Browsing the web, I found a number of various meanings for the phrase. Which led me to remember a quote from Earl Nightingale. “People are where they are because that is exactly where they really want to be whether they will admit that or not.” In my early years in the mortgage business, I listened to Earl’s wisdom every week on audio tapes. (You can find his words of wisdom on YouTube podcasts). I must remind myself about the limitless sky every time when due to the high interest rates last year, we did not have enough business to pay salaries to our employees (we used our savings).

I needed to find an alternative way to help our clients. My solution was to find clients for whom reverse mortgages can help them enjoy financial comfort during their retirement. This is why I wrote my book, “Retirement Solutions for Smart People™. How to Accomplish Financial Comfort”. Since many homeowners during their retirement lack sources of income, for me “there is no limit, but the sky” means I can help them with the reverse mortgages. Now the book is also available in audio. You are invited to order it on Amazon.

These three images above are of the clouds.

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