Karpas
Each year we tell the dismal tale of bondage:
the exit from the confines of the straits
on a journey that traverses arid sands.
We eat the greens, awash in brine;
unleavened bread that dries the tongue.
We swallow down the bitter herbs
then forge ahead, foreseeing freedom,
celebrating with four cups of heady wine, yet
redemption is suspended beyond reach.
We have not found the wisdom and the valor
to wipe out wanton misery and vice;
nor yet can trust the feral with the helpless –
we have not yet drawn water from the wells.
We now take a vegetable, representing our joy at the dawning of spring after our long, cold winter. We dip it into salt water, a symbol of the tears our ancestors shed as slaves. Before we eat it, we recite a short blessing:
בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה יְיָ, אֱלֹהֵינוּ מֶלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם, בּוֹרֵא פְּרִי הָאֲדָמָה
Baruch Atah Adonai, Eloheinu Melech ha-olam, borei p’ree ha-adama.
We praise God, Ruler of Everything, who creates the fruits of the earth.
We look forward to spring and the reawakening of flowers and greenery. They haven’t been lost, just buried beneath the snow, getting ready for reappearance just when we most needed them.
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We all have aspects of ourselves that sometimes get buried under the stresses of our busy lives. What has this winter taught us? What elements of our own lives do we hope to revive this spring?
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