Day 1 of the Omer: Chesed in Chesed, Life in its Element

Albatross Flying
Albatross Face Shot
Blue-footed Booby and Babe
Marine Iguana Looking at Ocean View

Sunday night April 20, 2008 - to Monday April 21, the 16th Day of the month of Nisan, is the first day of the omer.

And Adonay God created... and it was good.

Last summer I travelled to the Galapogos Islands with my in-laws, Richard and Barbara Braun and extended family. The Brauns initiated the trip and recruited all their children and grandchildren. It was a long time dream for them to see this amazing archipelago together with those closest to them.

Witnessing the power and beauty of nature in its glory and diversity was awe-inspiring. Here is a partial summary of what we saw on Espanola Island on June 25, 2007:

• sea-lions sunning on the beach
• massive numbers of marine iguana's sunning on rocks and sand
• blue-footed boobies performing mating rituals
• blue footed boobies caring for just hatched babes
• albatross participating in elaborate mating ritual
• massive hawk perched just a few feet from the path

That was the short list.

Witnessing this unselfconscious life-in-its-element display of nature is humbling. We human beings often strive very hard to find or be in our element.

At this beginning of our journey from the sea to Sinai, may we be able to experience the rich and diverse gifts of creation. May this awareness lead us to humility and a full awareness of the gift that it is to inhabit this varied and resplendent earth.

[A similar teaching from 2006.]