Passover is just around the corner...

That time of year when we clean out all of the chametz from our homes and lives. Literally chametz means the products containing any kind of leavening. The deeper meaning is to clear out anything that can cause us to be "puffed up". During the 8 days of passover we only eat the "bread of haste"...good ole matzoh. The picture is of a matzoh cover I made using intertwining hearts that were machine appliqued.

This story of freedom, the Hebrews leaving Egypt after so many long years of slavery...that is just one part of the story. There are outside forces that enslave us, yes indeed. Passover, however, is also the story of the wandering in the desert that my people did for so many many years before finding their "home", their promised land. The actual distance was not that far, but it took 40 years for them to work out the internal enslavement each of them lived. The promised land is about freedom, and you need to be ready to embrace freedom. Each Passover at our home, Sho leads the seder (Passover ritual meal) using the Haggadah (the guide to the ritual and retelling of the story). She wrote her own haggadah to reflect the freedom story of contemporary life. Each year, we never know who will join us around our table, but the opportunity to hear each person tell a story of freedom for them is a highlight of the evening for me.

This year's questions to ponder...

1. What keeps me too much into my own stuff to see the big picture?
2. Where have I become too "narrow" this year and need to re-think?
3. Where have I achieved freedom in this year?

How are you more free today? Leave me a comment...