Day eleven of the Omer

“Are we there yet?!” Every summer my family would pack up our car and drive to summer camp, a Jewish camp set beside the beach in Malibu, California. A large menorah sat along the highway on a hillside just above the beach. We’d drive for two hours arguing about who would be the lucky one, the most perceptive one…who would spot the menorah first. Even though we were little kids, we never shouted out “are we there yet?” because we knew that the menorah would serve as the symbol of our arrival.

The Omer is also a family journey. As the Jewish people journeyed through the desert they argued and complained. Their cries for water and food…along with their fond memories of the good old days in Egypt, were the equivalent of children complaining and shouting out “are we there yet?”

Embarking on a journey is never easy. It’s reassuring to know, however, that something warm and familiar awaits. In ancient days Mt Sinai was like the menorah on the hill – a physical and spiritual destination, a symbol of arrival, of hope, of potential.

May our journey during this Omer be safe and easy. May our daily counting remind us that a holy destination awaits us. “Are we there yet?” Almost! All we have to do is keep counting.

Rabbi Don Goor - Milan and Israel