For me, counting the Omer is an impossible task — now, it was all I could think about

MY

husband always says, “If you can’t get the tie to knot properly on the first few tries, then no matter how much you battle with it, it won’t sit right.”

I’ve found that it’s the same for headscarves. Headscarf application should be simple: place bun of hair strategically on the top of head or base of neck, apply bobo non-slip hat to create padding and keep everything secure, then tie the scarf over it. If the scarf just won’t sit straight or tie evenly after two tries, I throw it back in the drawer and put on a different one. It just isn’t going to work, and there’s no use fighting fate.

The popular maxim urges us to try and try again, but an equally popular quote assures us that trying and trying again is where madness lies.

I’m not sure how any of this applies to real life. Definitely with child rearing. Sometimes, I try and try again (“Brush your teeth! Here — five different flavors of toothpaste!”). Other times, I give up (sometimes, any attempts at civilization are bound to fail, and instead of wasting my energy, I carefully conceal all croutons, smarties, and satisfyingly messy potential projectiles).

Then along comes the Omer. I have never in my life succeeded in counting the whole Omer. “That,” said a wise friend recently, “is because you are determinedly smartphone-free. Anyone with a smartphone gets at least four reminders a day — it’s impossible to miss a day.” That’s a new pro-smartphone argument. Although somehow, I don’t think my kids’ Bais Yaakov or TAG will be impressed by that reasoning.