It's uncontrolled anger that brings murder and war to mankind, anger that dissolves marriages and makes for unhappy childhoods; anger, in general, that drains life of its joy and shatters a person's self-respect. If someone were to wave a magic wand and offer to free us of this internal scourge once and for all, who among us wouldn't jump at the chance? But by the same token, who among us finds anger easy to let go? As attractive a proposition as it may seem on paper, letting go of it feels like a sacrifice.

Aloneness is a basic premise of our existence, and each of us has to discover all over again what we're here for. Sometimes, it turns into a mighty lonely mission. For us, and for the tiny robot lost somewhere in space, there's no way out, as individuals and as a species.

We all have moments when we feel something deep within our hearts and souls. When the core of our being tells us that something is so. Tells us we must do something, and do it now, or an opportunity will be forever lost. I'm swimming in one of those moments. And I feel like I can barely keep my head above water.

I kept telling myself that I wouldn't let the eating disorder interfere with my ability to... have a life. I would stop when I was "thin enough." But even when I became anemic and felt like I was dying, I couldn't stop. It was only getting worse. As soon as I got to one "magic" number, I felt the urge to lose even more.

I needed a haircut... I went to a barbershop in London and as I sat down in the barber's chair, he asked me, "Talk or no talk?" I had never heard that choice presented before... Since that trip 29 years ago, I hardly ever thought about the incident... Only recently, after attending a shivah, did I reflect on this notion. When we visit a house of mourning and approach the mourner, we are required to wait before speaking... Why be quiet?

Navi is 23 years old and absolutely gorgeous. She is smart, funny, sweet, and warm. She has more friends than anyone I've ever known. Navi is also sincerely religious, with a wholehearted and firm belief in Hashem - no matter what adversity comes her way; and there has been plenty...

Twenty years ago, she sold her Ford van and all her belongings to cover the cost of her journey to New York, hoping to find her spiritual and artistic self. Hundreds of luminous canvases and life-changing encounters later, she found both. And she can't stop painting about it.

I'm sitting in my son's house in Neve Dekalim. It is Erev Shabbat, perhaps the last "normal" Shabbat in this very cozy Yishuv of 750 families, the 'capital' of Gush Katif. Outside, the wind is kicking around the sand, as if it has nothing else to do, perhaps in despair. In front of the house, a couple of children of the Bnei Menashe community are figuring out how to climb into a tree house overlooking this mild, back street on the edges of this amazing settlement...