We are grateful that we are together on this night as a family ~ Dayenu

We are grateful that we are together to share this moment ~ Dayenu

We are grateful that we are together, alive and healthy ~ Dayenu

We are grateful that we are able to eat together ~ Dayenu

We are grateful that we have a light shining upon us ~ Dayenu

We are grateful for everything and everyone that we have ~ Dayenu

We are grateful for all that has touched our lives ~Dayenu

We are grateful that our ancestors never gave up home, and to them we drink the second glass of wine together ~ Dayenu

Matzah. It’s flat, it has holes in it, it breaks easily, it crumbles, it’s bitter, and it’s nothing creative, yet Jewish people and Non-Jewish people that observe Passover eat it every day for at least 8 days out of the year. Sometimes more.

 “Something second hand and broken, still can make a pretty sound, and that second hand white baby grand still has something beautiful to give.” Megan Hilty

Every year we look at Matzah like it’s nothing special. But it represents something more than a large bland cracker. It represents hope. Matzah still has a beautiful lesson to teach us, and even though the Matzah in front of us is broken, it still has a beautiful story to tell.

I am a Jew because, born of Israel and having lost her, I have felt her live again in me, more loving than myself. I am a Jew because, born of Israel and having regained her. I wish her to live after me, more living than myself.

I am a Jew because the faith of Israel demands of me no abdication of the mind.

I am a Jew because the faith of Israel requires of me all the devotion of the mind.

I am a Jew because in every place where suffering weeps, the Jew weeps.

I am a Jew because every time when despair cries out, the Jew hopes.

I am a Jew because, for Israel, the world is not yet completed: we are completing it.

I am a Jew because for Israel, Humanity is not yet fully formed; humanity must

perfect itself.

Edmond Fleg

Together as we wash our hands, they move into the bowl of water, and back out of the water. Why do we do this? Are our hands really getting clean without soap? We won’t be eating for some time, why do we do this so early?

The washing of our hands suggests that we are open to question. One question that is always asked is about hope.

Rick Recht answers in his song:

This is the hope that holds us together, Hatikvah, the hope that will last forever, the hope is still real.

From the Diaspora, to the exodus, to the holocaust, to war, to independence, to more wars, to threats, bombing, and peace, Israelis never give up hope. We are strong people because we have hope. And the hope holds us together. That’s why the Israeli National Anthem is Hatikvah, because that means hope.

Elijah is a symbol of hope because he represents the peace and love that will come to this Earth upon his presence. Let us drink to Elijah!

Barukh atah Adonai, Eloheinu melekh ha'olam, borei pri ha'gafen.

“Only in the darkness can you see the stars.” –Martin Luther King Jr.

“A lesson for all of us is that for every loss, there is victory, for every sadness, there is joy, and when you think you’ve lost everything, there is hope.” ―Geraldine Solon

Why is it that through all the bad things our ancestors went through, that they didn’t lose hope?

Hope is that thing with feathers that perches in the soul and sings the tune without the words and never stops… at all.”  -Emily Dickinson

“Aerodynamically the bumblebee shouldn’t be able to fly, but the bumblebee doesn’t know that so it goes on flying anyway.” –Mary Kay Ash

What do you think the victories of the Jewish People say about whether or not hope is eternal?