Rockets count down
Their launch to space,
Seconds matter, and are counted
In every race;
Count the minutes of arrival
Of a bus, train, or plane,
Days to go, when we’ll see
A loved one again.
Count the seconds we wait
On street corners to cross,
The days and years of sorrow,
Our mourning and loss.
We count down to celebrations,
To make happy memories,
Vacation, retirement,
Anniversaries.
The Omer is more
Than just a countdown of time;
Its connection goes beyond
Our earthly timeline.
Hashem told Avraham
“S’for ha’kochavim” –
Count the stars
Of your y’ladim;
As numerous as they
Will be, their trials and palls,
They will shine the brightest
When the darkest night falls.
At Pesach, we leave
Mitzrayim behind,
Saw exaltation on Sukkos,
Heaven and Earth aligned.
Boaz of Yehudah
Reaped his fields of barley,
Then, stepped up
Taking responsibility:
Fulfilled yibum –
Married his poor kinsman, Ruth;
The line of Mashiach began
When Boaz owned up in truth.
Shlomo HaMelech
Said the voice of barley,
If it could, would say:
“Pray for me!”
Barley, humble food
For animals and the poor,
Pours out its soul,
Hat in hand, at Hashem’s door.
Wheat, rich and affluent,
Would say:
“Hashem, I’m calling You
From very far away.”
Coming out of vulnerability,
Raised up
To wealth and stability,
Beware, for when
That day has come,
Many forget
Where we come from.
Many have already paid the cost,
Dispirited, swallowed up
Among the nations, lost.
Remember Mitzrayim, do not fail,
Stand up and be counted
For Israel.
From the ashes
Of devastation
Israel returned,
Hashem’s Jewish Nation,
At the forefront
Of every aspiration
That betters
Mankind’s situation.
Hashem, please teach us
The number of our days,
So that we may acquire
A heart of wisdom,
May we look to our ways.
The journey from slavery,
The Holocaust,
Wandering Your world,
Exiled and storm-tossed,
From past to future;
HaKadosh Baruch Hu,
All we could ever count on
Has always been You.
By Sharon Marcus