Shalom My Gantseh Megillah Family and Friends,

On July 11th I will turn 60-years-old and enter the seventh decade of my life. It seems only natural to look back on my first six decades so I can get a sense of what I may have learned over the years. What mistakes would I eliminate if I had a chance to do it all over again? What would I change about my life, if I could? After considerable thought I determined that the answer can be given in one word…….nothing!

I certainly have made mistakes, and exercised astoundingly poor judgment on occasion, but each incident has taught me an important lesson. These lessons made my life more fulfilling. I know I must have treated some people unfairly, and I am sorry about having done so. I also know that I have learned how people should be treated, and now I try to deal with people in a meaningful and fair manner.

I believe it is important to accept responsibility for all my actions, and I offer my apology where it is owed, whenever possible. The larger responsibility I take away from these experiences is the ability to make myself a better and more sensitive person. I have learned that not accepting my responsibilities and not being accountable for my errors will only serve to stunt my growth. Paradoxically, refusing to grow, condemns you to repeating the same errors over and over again.

All in all, I am content with the person I am today and I vigilantly avoid being too self-satisfied. I believe I treat people fairly, and I try my very best to be empathetic as well as sympathetic towards others. I work at being the best friend I can be to those people close to me, and I try to give back to the community, of which I am a proud part, via such efforts as the Gantseh Megillah.

Am I perfect? I answer with a resounding, no! My goal is not perfection because; the only perfect people are dead people, since they can no longer make mistakes.

The experiences of my first six decades have helped form the person I am today. If I had to do it all over again, I would need to make the same mistakes. Different mistakes would cause me to be a different person, and I kinda like the person I am.  I hope you agree.

Much love to all of you,
Michael