Excerpted from Jewish Action magazine, Spring 5762/2002. (The full article can be found on the Jewish Action website by clicking here.)

Making it Count

Each year, remembering becomes a front-burner issue. Between Pesach and Shavuot, we eagerly count towards receiving the Torah anew, hopefully marking off our personal progress from physical to spiritual freedom. For those with a sense of humor -- and more importantly, for those who wish to share the mitzvah of counting the Omer with those who might need a bit of encouragement with contemporary flavor -- there is a new virtual string to tie around your finger to remind you to do your daily counting.

When Brian Rosman lived in Israel, he got a double kick out of watching The Simpsons on cable TV with his young daughter. He was drawn by the material, and found it even funnier when keeping an eye on the Hebrew subtitles. Back in the Boston area, he coupled his experience with inspiration coming from a paper sefirah calendar, originated by an acquaintance. Thus was born a rather unique web site, dedicated to the furtherance of a mitzvah not well known outside of Orthodox circles. Go to http://JVibe.com/homer and you too will be introduced to Sefirat Homer!

You can print up daily or weekly calendars, complete with a host of Simpson characters modified to reflect their apparent conversion to Judaism. (They are funnier and cleverer than you might anticipate!)

You must use the site with caution. Some of the explanatory material that accompanies the graphics reflects Reconstructionist thought, although Brian was inclusive enough to link to some very kosher Orthodox commentary, clearly labeled as such. This adds just one more layer of unorthodoxy to a site which was nonetheless enjoyed by many Orthodox correspondents who got back to Brian with their thanks. (I turned one of the opening screens into my wallpaper throughout the sefirah period, and was greeted by a very effective reminder from a stern-faced Bart Simpson every time I started my computer.)

If you need something unusual to jog your memory each day, this may just do the trick.