For millennia, Jewish people have shown a remarkable ability to actively participate in the cultures in which they lived, as well as fuse those cultures with a unique Jewish twist. 

From language (e.g. Yiddish and Ladino), to architecture (e.g. the great 12th century Moorish synagogue in Toledo, and the Gothic 'Old-New' synagogue in Prague), to food (bagels!), even down to science and medicine, Jews over the years have produced synthesized, innovative creations, blending local culture with Jewish spirit.

One such area is music. From Jewish opera, to Jewish rock, to Jewish reggae, there's bound to be a Jewish version out there of the tunes you know and love.

Earlier this week I had one such Jewish artist playing in the car, and the lyrics caught my attention:

'We all want to live forever,

But we all seem to forget,

We haven't lived the days,

The weeks, the months, the years ahead'.

Hey, you never know where you might find inspiration!

That song touched on one of the most consequential mindsets we can choose to live by:

We all want to 'live forever' - or at least plan as much as possible for our future. We spend so much time planning! Planning for tomorrow, planning for the winter, planning for the summer, planning for the next quarter and planning for retirement. And how important planning is; 'If you fail to plan, you are planning to fail', said Ben Franklin.

But sometimes planning - the quintessential definition of an exercise which is only a means to an end - can become an end unto itself. We might get so involved with planning that the precious, once-in-a-lifetime moment that's here right now, slips away. At times it's that very preparedness that distracts us from enjoying the priceless moment at hand. 

So how can we combine both 'living forever', i.e preparing for the future, and living in the present? 

By living forever. By treasuring each and every individual minute, and imbuing that moment with a sense of independence, as if that singular moment would last forever. Because it does. When we truly value, treasure and concentrate on one individual moment, that moment lasts for enternity. 

Our time doesn't last forever, but we can ensure that every individual moment we are blessed with does.

Rabbi Avrohom