So,by the time Shavuot occurs, we will have counted the Omer, the days between Pesach and Shavuot, for the past 49 days. We've tried to do self-improvement: to BE "plus one," ie, better than we are now...
Counting can be hypnotic, meditative, or it can be fraught with anxiety. In my poem, "The Counting" I explore what it means to modern folk, far removed from the rhythm of the seasons, to go through this Jewish ritual.