Ever Wondered ... What Do Matzo & Easter Eggs Have In Common?

This year, Good Friday and Easter fall during the week-long celebration of Passover. (Too bad Peep chicks and bunnies aren’t kosher.) When this happened in 2021 (see below), it made us realize that while the holidays may be celebrated very differently, they are very similar, as each celebrates heritage, traditions, history … and hope. Imagine if we looked past our differences and focused on how much we have in common.

red head assets.rebelmouse.io

I can't tell you how much I love when Passover and Easter are close together. And this year, the last day of Passover falls on Easter!

Black's Head Black assets.rebelmouse.io

They usually fall close to one another, and when the girls were young and celebrated everything (which many interfaith families do), it allowed me to be efficient in terms of gift-giving and celebration meals.

red head assets.rebelmouse.io

I'll never forget you adding fluffy Easter bunnies and pastel-colored eggs to a Zabar's basket of Passover goodies. But I wasn't really thinking about that.

Black assets.rebelmouse.io	Let me guess. You want to use this as an opportunity to remind me – once again – that the Comparative Religion class you took decades ago at Wake Forest University was one of the best classes you ever took.
red head assets.rebelmouse.io	Fine, make fun of me. But that class was such an eye-opener. Before it, I thought there were huge differences between the religions. But the reality's very different. We have much in common.
Black assets.rebelmouse.io	Yes, a belief in something bigger than us, in faith, in traditions, in celebrations that go back centuries.
red head assets.rebelmouse.io	Exactly! And while people might celebrate different holidays based on their religion, when those holidays come close together it's a perfect reminder of what's truly important. Our fundamental values are so similar. If everyone could see that, maybe we'd be pulling together more and be torn apart less.
Black assets.rebelmouse.io	It is up to each of us to decide whether we want to focus on our differences or our similarities.
red head assets.rebelmouse.io	At this point, I'd settle for respect, tolerance, and understanding.
Black assets.rebelmouse.io	You left out world peace. Well, given that Passover and Easter both celebrate history … and hope … maybe your request is reasonable after all.
red head assets.rebelmouse.io	In that case, whether our readers are eating the last of the matzo or hunting Easter eggs, I think we should wish them a very happy holiday … one filled with hope, happiness, and peace.
Black assets.rebelmouse.io	You just did.

holidays

Words & Banter

Soft Skills: Essential For The Workplace. Essential For Life!

When Red first heard Black talking about the importance of "soft skills," she didn't even know what she was referring to, let alone that they would be important to her life. So, Black explained that it was a term used to describe intangible but essential skills, such as critical thinking and problem-solving, communications, and conflict management.

Red, trying to be sarcastic, then asked if there was such a thing as “hard skills,” Black matter-of-factly told her those are tangible and technical skills such as computer skills.

Of course, Black couldn’t pass up an opportunity for sarcasm and explained that although there’s consensus about the importance of soft skills, there’s debate about what they should be called, with her favorite being the Texas Education Agency (TEA) calling them "21st Century Skills" – although she's old enough to remember they were important in the 20th Century, too.

But would anyone call them “Mom Skills”? Well, Red couldn’t help but remember the time Black told her, “Your job is every bit as demanding as a corporate position, and, in fact, you use many of the same skill sets.”Not something Red could ever have imagined, but it made sense once she better understood what soft skills are and how they are used. But then Black took it a step further,

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soft skills

Words & Banter

What Do You Mean “Homework Never Ends”?

Red was your typical straight-A student, getting great grades starting in kindergarten straight through to graduating from college.(Black’s grades were less than stellar, plus she was a discipline problem – some things never change.) And then, excited and proud of herself, Red thought she was done. Black, on the other hand, thinks of education as something that never ends, and much to the chagrin of students, will tell them,

Homework never ends; it just is called “research” when you get older.

Over the last few years, Red has come around to Black’s way of thinking and realizes it’s a mindset. And that education is more than the classes you take in school.

September is when students of all ages are back in school, but it’s also National Literacy Month, which is about so much more than reading and writing. Literacy includes things like Digital Literacy, Financial Literacy, Health Literacy, and even News Literacy. (As the linked Conversation Starters indicate, Red was the “poster child” of a highly educated person who lacked many of these basic literacy skills.)

So, we challenge you to find a topic that interests you or one you could benefit from learning (personally or professionally) and start doing your homework.

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lifelong learner

Words & Banter

Feeling Overwhelmed? THE DAILY HELP … Will Help

For many of us, Labor Day marks the end of summer (temperatures aside), and as we switch from a summer holiday mindset back to the “real world”, we can’t help but feel overwhelmed.

You don’t need us to tell you how falling back into a work or school routine can be challenging, especially if you’re facing a backlog of tasks and responsibilities. And, if that wasn’t bad enough, the “silly season” is just around the corner. (Red has been seeing Halloween decorations since mid-July, which means Thanksgiving and all the winter holidays aren’t far behind.)

But you don’t need us to tell you why you feel overwhelmed; you need help dealing with being overwhelmed.

When our new website goes live next year, one of the major sections will be THE DAILY HELP, where you’ll find easy-to-implement tools to get your day back on track and feel more in control.

But that doesn’t help you … NOW. So, here are a handful of our favorite posts to help you deal with daily challenges we all face. (Red admits that she picked the ones she felt she needed to reread.)

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