President's Message

What’s in a number?

I’ve always been fascinated by the number five. It’s been my lucky number for as far back as I can remember. That makes the multiples of five pretty interesting as well.

This year, my father would have turned 90. I will, G-d willing, turn 60 and my son, 30. My Mom will be 85 and my daughter, in under a week from now, will be 25.

My father always said, “They’re just numbers” and “Live every day as if it was your birthday”. He was wiser than he knew.

But back to the numbers. How much do we allow numbers to rule our lives? In Judaism, some are very important to us, such as the 10 Commandments, 613 mitzvot, the counting of the omer.

Numbers also structure our lives; salaries, bills, obligations and charitable giving. Unfortunately, many people believe it’s how we keep score in this life. What can we afford? How will we leave a legacy for our children or relatives? For what will we be remembered?

I recommend we count in other ways as well. How many acts of kindness can we bestow? What can we do to make a difference in the lives of others? How do we ration our limited time and resources?

It all adds up. It depends on what we think really counts.

B’Shalom

Randi Mozenter