In our portion this week, the Torah recounts all the many festivals, which we are obligated to celebrate throughout the Jewish year. In the midst of this we are instructed to count seven weeks from the second day of Pesach until the festival of Shavuot. Usefartem lochem... sheva Shabbatot temimot - "and you shall count for you...seven complete weeks."

As the commentators note, this specific instruction relates to the fact that the Jewish people counted from the day of their Exodus from Egypt till the giving of the Torah on Sinai.

All the different festivals have a direct correlation between then and now. The Exodus from Egypt marks the birth of our nation. The giving of the Torah was our launch onto the universal scene. Even the dwelling in huts recollects our travels through the desert and reminds us of our endless wandering and interminable vulnerability. Yet of what significance is the counting of the Jews more than three thousand years ago to the here and now of our personal lives?

In order to answer this question we need to appreciate the significance of this counting in the first instance. For two hundred and ten years, the Israelites were victims of routine. They were stuck in a rut and knew of no way out. Even as God sends them the message of redemption, they are left in limbo contemplating their future and perceiving nothing other than dead ends. We are free, but where do we go from here? It can be quite exasperating to be presented with a new lease on life, yet having no objective or goal in sight.

Take incarceration as an example. For however many years the individual concerned is confined to the restraints of an environment where he cannot function as a constructive contributor to civilization.

Then, suddenly he is at liberty in a changed world, with no direction or purpose. How does he suddenly readjust to mainstream society? How is he capable of making that leap from a virtually lifeless existence into a more robust lifestyle?

This was the quandary that faced the Jews as they edged closer to their salvation. Hence God told Moses in the first instance, still prior to their deliverance, that when they would be redeemed - ta'avdun et haElokim al hahar hazeh - they would "serve God on this mountain." The Jewish people were informed that following their redemption they would make their way to Mount Sinai where they would receive the Torah and assume the status of nationhood, a light unto others and indeed the trailblazers of morality to the world.

This then gave them a focus. It set their objectives in sight, and as such, much like anyone counting the days to some great experience, the Jews counted every day from their Exodus until that defining moment, with great enthusiasm and anticipation. Those forty-nine days were the halfway house, helping the Jewish people adjust from their years of torment to their newfound liberty.

A mother and a baby camel were talking one day when the baby camel asked, "Mom, why do we have these huge three-toed feet?"
The mother replied, "Well son, when we trek across the desert, our toes will help us stay on top of the soft sand."
Two minutes later the young camel asked, "Mom, why do we have these long eyelashes?"
"They are there to keep the sand out of our eyes on the trips through the desert," replied the mother.
"Mom, why have we got these great big humps on our back?" "They are there to help us store water for our long treks across the desert, so we can go without drinking for long periods of time."
"So we have huge feet to stop us from sinking, long eyelashes to keep the sand out of our eyes, and these humps to store water." "Yes dear," said the mother. "So why are we in the San Diego Zoo?"

How often do people claim to be trapped in dreary, mind-numbing professions, loveless relationships or leading monotonous lives?

They feel alive inside, bursting with energy, yet they trudge along, taking each day as it comes, drifting through life languidly and lethargically without any sense of satisfaction or real feeling of accomplishment. They have no goals, nor any specific ambitions.

The message of the counting of the Omer is that we all have talents unique to everyone individually. Each human being has been endowed with some God given gifts with which they can make a difference and impact the world. We can turn situations around and make them more exciting and meaningful.
This doesn't mean we seek out other alternatives. Sometimes this may be inevitable, but in the main rather than succumbing to the hindrances that confront us, we ought to set up challenges for ourselves and seek out the avenues where we can add new vitality into our otherwise dull circumstances by establishing goals and objectives.

Nowhere is this more applicable than in the religious dimensions of our lives. We may tend to get fixed in a routine, where everything we do is par for the course, without any divine ambitions. Ultimately we end up directionless, cast into a spiritual wilderness as familiarity breeds contempt. Counting the Omer reminds us how we should set for ourselves lofty goals, and to gradually progress toward those ambitions.

Rome wasn't built in a day, and these grand accomplishments won't happen over night. But with steadfast determination and gradual progress, they can certainly be achieved.

There is yet another special day on the Jewish calendar, which, interestingly enough always falls in the midst of the Omer. Pesach sheini as it is known, or "second Pesach." To reassure you, it does not require another radical overhaul. God instituted this day in order to accommodate those, who for one reason or another could not participate in the original Pascal sacrifice.

Though this day may have little significance today its implicit message is very relevant as it signifies the concept of a second chance. That all is never lost, and even when for whatever reasons there are obstacles which impeded one's abilities the first time round, if we seek out the opportunities and create the given chances, then we can succeed.

A worthwhile exercise is for one to do a personal inventory and determine whether they are utilising their individual traits to further enhance the quality of their existence. And where one can establish that there is more to life than what is on offer, then to set targets and aspire steadily toward a more meaningful existence.

Life may not be all we want, but it is all we have. Make the most of it!