....from Raising Your Child To be a Mensch, Neil Kurshan, courtesy of Roz:
"Zay a mensh! - Be a mensch! - was an expression repeated a thousand times in the homes of many first generation Jewish immigrants. Children who knew no other words of Yiddish knew these three words. Menschlichkeit is responsibility fused with compassion, a sense that one's own personal needs and desires are limited by the needs and desires of other people. A mensch acts with self-restraint and humility, always sensitive to the feelings and thoughts of others. As menschen we feel a genuine passion to alleviate the pain and suffering of those around us.
The term 'mensch' literally means a 'person' or 'man,' but it represents a moral ideal for all people, men and women alike......Menschlichkeit is the opposite of cruelty, pettiness, and self-centeredness. It means being sensitive to other peoples' needs and seeking out ways to help them......In the Jewish culture of Eastern Europe where the term arose, to call someone a mensch was the highest compliment that could be given."
May we all aspire......
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