Message Through Time

Gratitude for Change: A Letter From the Past

This morning something curious happened.
An email arrived from someone who once lived in a very different universe.
Someone who has been quiet for two decades.
Someone who was me.

In 2005 he sent a message into the future hoping that time and technology would keep their promise. He was young and tired and overflowing with dreams and burp cloths. He hit “send,” not knowing if the future would ever open the door.

He wrote about life in Israel.
A tiny apartment.
A newborn who thought nighttime was a social invitation.
An entire whole monthly budget of $1,800.
Five hundred dollars for food and groceries that had to stretch like a superhero.

He worried about everything he could not see yet.
Career. Calling. Money. Meaning.
Would those questions ever find their answers
or would life always feel like guessing the next step in the dark.

What he did not realize is that love was already the answer.
The rest would catch up later.

---

He wrote that we were madly in love.
I read those words today and smiled, tears forming.
Because love survived the storms and silliness
the schedules and surprises
the sleepless nights
and the ones where laughter kept us awake instead.

Today there are four children
each one a whole world.

Baruch once fell asleep the moment stroller wheels rolled along the streets of Jerusalem.
Now he conquers chemistry and calculus at FAU.
He talks about becoming a doctor.
Sometimes I wonder if he will one day remind me to take my medication
and I will pretend to listen.

Eli a senior in high school
a warrior on the wrestling mat
a strategist at the poker table
an entrepreneur who washed windows to create his own opportunity
and invests his money like he already knows the market better than most of us.
His heart is large enough to carry both ambition and kindness forward.

Ezra our programmer and gamer
turning imagination into code
budding chess master
and applying to choice middle schools
ready for a bigger stage.

And Stella
our two year old comet
racing through rooms
making strangers smile
proof that joy can take human form
and insist on being noticed.

---

In 2005 we walked through malls without buying anything
just wandering to feel alive.

Today we wander differently.
College tours.
Tournaments.
Science fairs.
Dinner adventures where we sometimes remember to sit still.
Family outings that turn sidewalks into runways
and parking lots into dance floors.

Brooke works beside me now.
Not only my wife
but the pulse of our practice
the calm voice reminding me to stay present
when my mind tries to sprint ahead.
We built our medical practice from an idea
into a living place of healing
where we guide people toward peace
the same peace we have been slowly building at home.

I have learned to breathe more deeply.
Yoga in the morning sun.
Dancing when music insists
even if my timing is questionable.
Inner peace found not in belonging to one label
but in discovering we belong to everything.

---

The younger me wrote with hope as currency.
He measured success by how well he could stretch a dollar.
He thought stability lived in certainty.

The older me knows stability lives in gratitude.
In the chaos of family dinner.
In the laughter that erupts from nothing.
In the quiet moments when love is unmistakable.

Gratitude is not wishing to rewind
but realizing how far forward we have come.

So thank you
to the man who wrote that message
to the man who opened it
and to the man still becoming.

We are still learning
still growing
still grateful
and still in love.

---

In the fall of 2005, Forbes partnered with Yahoo to create an Email Time Capsule. Millions of people wrote messages to their future selves, sealed away until technology caught up with time. I had completely forgotten I participated. Then, this morning, an email appeared with the subject line: “Message from your past.”

What I found was a snapshot of a young couple living in Israel, raising their first child, hopeful and unsure about the future. Two decades later, that message feels like a conversation across time, reminding me how much life can grow when nurtured by love, courage, and curiosity. Below is the text of that message.

---

Hi this is You 20 years ago just saying hello and reminding you what times were like back then. You don’t remember what I am talking about but you once sent a message from yahoo.com who partnered with forbes.com to create an online time capsule. Well this is what was going on 20 years ago.

We live in Israel (our 2nd year there) Our address is 14 Yam Suf apt 7 in Ramat Eshkol.Benjy is learning in Ohr Somayach in Rabbi Pindrus’s shiur. His Chavrusa is Yisrael Meir Katz and Rafi Mollot. His friends are Eli Altschuler (also workout buddy), Jordan & Rochy Berkowitz, Phil Nicholas. Bracha is recovering from Baruch’s birth. Trying to stay rested, watching desperate housewives and friends on craftytv.com.

Her friends are Chantzy Geller and that’s about it... well there was Hadassa Chetrit but we havn’t heard from her in a while. Yaakov is in Derech this year and he comes by often. We enjoy listening to his latest experiences and drama. Dad & Sara just moved to Netanya and we will be going to visit them next Shabbos. They have a lovely apt. accross from the Mediteranian.

This Shabbos was a restful one. We ate home friday night. Just the three of us. Baruch is a beautiful little child. Only 6 weeks old. We love him dearly. He keeps us up at night and is constantly feeding, but that’s ok. We had a kiddush this week for Hindy Geller. She is 5 days old and with a full head of hair. Bracha baked 3 cakes! One of them with fresh flowers in the center and a delicous tray of brownies and fudge.

We are madly in love with each other. Benjy comes home for lunch every day and has trouble going back on time because he loves spending time with beautiful Bracha.

Our favorite restaurants are Yoja in Emek Refaim & Primavera in the Sheraton Plaza. Bracha loves Gnochi, and Benjy loves Sushi. (Baruch is kvetching... Bracha just went to change him)

In our spare time Benjy does some description writing for an online jewelry store called LaraKent.com. He gets paid $18 an hour. We like to go for walks with Baruch- it never fails to put him to sleep. Bracha just got 2 exercize dvd’s and is just waiting for the 6 week post-birth doctor visit to get back into shape. Although she already got her stunning figure back two weeks after Baruch was born!!

We also like to go to town or the mall and just stroll around (we don’t have any extra $$ for buying stuff)We spend about $1800 a month:

Rent $700

Vaad Habayis $30

Insurance $150

Food $500

Water $75

Phones/Internet $134

Electric $100

Transportation $100

Cleaners $35

Misc $50

We are planning on moving back to America at some point. We still don’t know when or where to yet. Benjy doesn’t know what he will do to make a living. Bracha plans to stay home and be a mother maybe work part-time. Maybe she will have a home business. We have about $18,000 in savings which we are saving for a downpayment on a house and are struggling to keep budgeted. Thankfully we are not really in debt. That’s all. Love,Benjy & Bracha Soffer (and Baruch)