For the last time tonight, we fill our glasses with wine. 

Tonight, we think about those who are not here at the table because they are traveling through the borderlands. Our stomachs and hearts are full, while those crossing may not know where their next meal is coming from. 

It is customary to fill a glass of wine for Elijah, the prophet who will usher in a Messianic age for the Jewish people. Instead, we fill a glass of water, in honor of those who have walked thousands of miles, those who perish seeking justice, those whose bodies remain unclaimed at Medical Examiner’s offices, and those who live as undocumented people in the United States. 

As is traditional, we take a moment now to open our door, literally and metaphorically, to those who are strangers and hungry. 

Written by Justine Orlovsky-Schnitzler