Twenty-four days of the Omer: True, Harmonious Endurance

Today is twenty-four days, which is three weeks and three days of the Omer. תפארת שבנצח, Tiferet ShebeNetzach, Harmonious, True Endurance.

I need a roadmap for this thing called life

In my early twenties, I wrote a song called “I Need a Road Map for this Thing Called Life.” Its chorus has been stuck in my head as I meditate on enduring will. The longer I study wisdom, the deeper I know that I don’t have a road map. The stories I tell about how I got to this point or where I’m going from here shift on a daily basis. I hope my stories continue to stretch and grow as I seek deeper truth and more complete embodiment of the person I want to be.

How an image devoid of humans reminds me of tiny ones

This photo reminds me of the deep bath tub I soaked in as I encouraged each of my babies to leave my body. I don’t have answers, but I have experience. That feeling of holding my first child for the first time, barely allowing myself a moment’s rest. And I compare it to the feeling of holding my second child for the first time, exhausted and afraid I was going to drop his 9lb 10 oz body. Being alive is a miracle. Enduring life is a miracle.

Allowing myself to be guided by love

More miraculous is allowing yourself to be guided by love. To speak and act from love, while maintaining healthy boundaries. I struggle to embody this simple truth. Sometimes, like today when my 10 lb dog got attacked by a large dog who wasn’t on a leash, I lose all sense of propriety. (Always use a leash when walking your dog. Always.)

And yet, I’ll sink back into harmonious, enduring truth. I will serve goodness and light. I will honor the strength of the body that carries me through life, and accept its limitations with grace. And I will continue to meditate on the emanations of the Divine that help me become a vessel for holy truth.

Previously on this day in the Omer

24 days of the Omer 5778 / 2018: Why this counting? Wisdom, Discernment, & Understanding.

24 days of the Omer 5777 / 2017: Have the courage to speak your truth even when others hide their essence.