Today is Day 27 of the counting of the omer. Now is when it gets hard. It is hard to keep writing day after day and find something new to say. It is hard to make these new routines stick. The last two posts were emotionally draining. I thought that writing about the bird feeder and how the birds praise G-d was going to be easy. It turned out it was anything but easy. For me, it was an important piece of writing, one that on reflection you can see the signs of automatic writing, that which comes from deep within. Who is doing the praising? Of G-d, of me, of both? Can I hear the praise? Of the birds? Of my parents? Of friends and family, congregants and co-workers? Of myself? Can I sustain that feeling that even if my parents were not good at saying that they loved me or were proud of me, that in fact they were?

I think that is what today is about. Today is about bonding in endurance, yesod b’netzach. Another translation would be the foundation of eternity. We are one week out from the Boston Marathon bombing. If I learned anything training for Boston through the years, it is about discipline and bonding. I need that strong foundation that comes with running through the winter snow and ice. I need the routine that comes from lacing up my shoes at dawn. Bonding is about creating that routine. Weight Watchers has been talking a lot about that lately. This month’s routine is about remembering to put an activity monitor on. Remembering to put the gym shoes in the car. Planning ahead. Making this a routine.

Spirituality requires discipline too. It is about remembering to say Modah Ani when I first get up. It is about remembering to say Ufros Aleinu and the Sh’ma when I go to bed. It is about lighting Shabbat candles, about saying Kiddush, about keeping kosher, about living intentionally.

Writing is like that. Once upon a time, what seems like a long, long time ago, Anita Diamant told me that if I was going to write a book, I would need the discipline of writing every day. It is the foundation of good writing. As it turns out, it also the foundation of good spirituality. It is part of how I glimpse eternity and am bonded with the One who exists forever, the Compassionate One, full of lovingkindness and grace.