Moving ahead to stop

היום אחד עשר יום, שהם שבוע אחד וארבעה ימים, בעמר
Today is eleven days, which is one week and four days, of the omer
נצח שבגבורה
A day of perseverance in a week of strength

In this year's count, we are reminded that Shabbat is an act of perseverance.

Perseverance has a feeling of constant movement, pushing ahead, making way. Shabbat is none of those things. It is about stopping, resting, not working. And yet, since it is part of every week, no matter how busy that week may be, it takes perseverance to keep that weekly stopping, going. That perseverance is one strength of the practice.

Every step taken

היום ארבעה ימים בעמר
Today is four days of the omer
נצח שבחסד
A day of perseverance in a week of loving kindness

Netzakh/Perseverance has an element of hardness to it. Dogged, stubborn, tenacious--those are the synonyms. Like gevurah, there's a tight clenching to something--real or imagined, it doesn't matter--bringing the tension needed to hold the determination.

But during this week, as we look at netzakh through the filter of chesed, of loving kindness, a different image emerges. Perseverance can be the ability to maintain who you are each day, making your way with the support but not the control of others. As any meditator will tell you, staying present within yourself is hard work. Keeping that present focus when out in the world is even harder.

I'm not big on reaching for goals--what happens when you reach that end point? I'd rather keep moving towards milestones, so each fulfillment becomes the start towards the next. Taking life in, day by day, moving towards something specific, changing course, even some aimless wandering--every step taken is a form of perseverance.