The long walk to freedom

It is Passover right now, the season when Jews remember the Exodus from Egypt and both refrain from leavened goods as a rembrance of the hardship of that always comes with such a journey, and eat specifically matzo, described in the seder as the "poor bread that our ancestors ate in Eretz Mitzraim". Last night, my husband and I began talking about "poor bread" and what it is today. We both agreed that while Matzo and it's brother the water cracker have risen significantly in social status, the "poor bread" today is fast food, eaten while rushing from one place to another, or while hunched over a desk, as work continues even through lunchtime.

We talked about how grain is being taken to feed our energy addiction, raising the costs for those least able to afford it. We talked about the need for energy conservation, and how all too often the focus on "green technology" instead of on actual sustainability can lead to counterintuitive results.

We talked about the continuing need for liberation, about what could be done to make the world a better place with the billions currently being spent on killing each other. We talked about the importance of maintaining human dignity in the face of inhumanity.

Every year, Jews celebrate the Seder, where the story of the Exodus is told, but last night we discussed the need to extend that further, to tell the story of liberation from bondage not merely one week a year, but throughout time, and not merely by a few people, but widening that story to as many mouths as will tell it. I would encourage everyone who reads this to help widen that discussion