Jelly Bean Sins

When I was just a little boy, I remember my Grandfather had diabetes. My mother explained that he couldn’t eat products with a lot of sugar. This would affect him negatively.

It didn’t make much sense to my five year old mind. From my perspective, candy was good. It made me feel good, and it tasted good and it also looked very good. What could be bad at all?

As I grew, I have learned about the danger of jelly beans and other objects that claim to be “beans.”

However, from time to time, I’ll have a jelly bean and then a hundred. And after wards, I’d feel bad, then have a sugar crash, become bloated and then end up eating more jelly beans with the rationalization that I already messed up. Dangerous cycle.

The real question is what happened? How could it be that’s something that once represented joy and happiness turn into something to “stay away from?”

The magic words: Heightened Awareness.

As I grew, it felt good to truly feel good i.e. healthy and energetic and bad to feel very bad i.e. overweight and lazy.

So of course what’s the lesson?

I have not met a perfect man i.e there are many of us still caught up in the dark side of life. Still trying to break out of whichever pit we’re digging in, no matter how wide or deep. And yet, we know, this isn’t where we want to be.

Good, next step. Where do we want to be?

In a place where we are utilizing ourselves completely.

It says the reward for a mitzvah is another mitzvah. Take a few minutes and think. A mitzvah allows you to utilize your full potential. An avera takes away that potential.

There is no greater pain than the loss of something that could have been.

So, rather than digging in a whole of jelly beans begin to eat actual beans that are actually good for you.

You’ll feel better.


Posted

in

by

Comments

13 responses to “Jelly Bean Sins”

  1. Josh Avatar
    Josh

    Nice, but why is doing a Mitzvah utilizing your full potential?

    1. Rocky Avatar
      Rocky

      A mitzvah allows for a greater connection with G-d and produces good in the world, you doing that particular mitzvah is allowing you to reveal your true self.

      1. Josh Avatar
        Josh

        I understand that that’s your position but how/why is that so? Who said it’s your true self? How/where do you see that? People that dont keep Torah are not “in touch” with their true selves?

  2. MochinRechavim Avatar

    The Yetzer Hara is described through a mashul as a man in the marketplace with his hand clenched tight. You ask him whats inside his hand and he lures you with great tales of riches and pleasure. You chase the man around all day till finally you catch him and pin him against the wall. He opens his end and to your surprise, its EMPTY! HAHAHAHA he laughs.

    Imaging how silly you would feel if you actually chased such a man around all day. The same is with your Yetzer Hara when you make a mistake.

    You can always do teshuvah if its sincere.

    Here is an interesting idea. Make a recording about how you feel after you made a mistake that violates Torah and spiritually, albeit for the moment, severs a certain connection with Hashem. Listen to it ever so often. It just might keep you away from those jelly beans.

    1. Rocky Avatar
      Rocky

      A recording would work but I imagine a video would be more effective, or even better, it may be more appropriate to have someone follow you around with a camera so you won’t severe any more connections,until of course you forget the camera is on you.

      1. MochinRechavim Avatar

        Your mocking of helpful advice either means you suffer from the very thing that you mock or that you are a tzaddik who struggles to communicate with the written word.

        1. Pop Chassid Avatar

          I’m pretty sure he wasn’t mocking you…

          1. MochinRechavim Avatar

            Lets assume for a second that a person could afford to have a person follow them around with a camera…pretty sure.

          2. Rocky Avatar
            Rocky

            MochinRechavim, There was no mocking involved in my written word, only a more extensive example of what you were suggesting, And, uh, I guess I do suffer from it, that’s why I wrote the article!!

          3. MochinRechavim Avatar

            I didn’t see the rocky under your name. My apologizes. Having someone follow you around is basically impossible. I was in a rut with a Jelly Bean sin as you call it. I did a recording and listened to it and it makes you feel alive to hear yourself right after the jelly bean yelling at yourself that it wasn’t worth it. The Rambam also suggests that saying the sin out loud and declaring out loud that you will do teshuvah and never do the sin again is the proper path to teshuvah. Just thinking about it as we read in yesterdays Tanya “does nothing” in this physical world.

  3. Princess Lea Avatar
    Princess Lea

    When I was a kid my favorite junk was choo-choos, those globs of sugar that got stuck in the teeth. Now my idea of fun is cracking open a can of chickpeas.

    Good habits beget more good habits. Mitzvahs beget more mitzvahs.

    1. Rocky Avatar
      Rocky

      I am having garbanzo beans for lunch

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *