March and April are interesting, even exciting months.

Hope is renewed! We get to measure ourselves against what was and what we hope will be. For some of us,
baseball returns, and if you’re a fan, you are allowed to dream again of what may be possible. It is a long journey. Just as very fan of every team has hope, all of us have hope for the months ahead.

And then there is Passover! Perhaps no festival has more impact on us as we age than this one does. It’s wonderful for children. Children are encouraged to learn the story of the Exodus on their own terms. They sing, “Frogs here, frogs there.” They ask the Four Questions. They find the Afikomen. They sip the wine and decide they don’t like it. They watch to see if Elijah sips from his cup.

But Passover is not just for children. Every one of us who is older can recount seders past, and we often mark time by who is sitting with us at the seder, how they have changed, and mark those places that are no longer filled.with friends and loved ones.

Time is relative in many ways. And, thanks to the blessings of health and medical technology, we enjoy the reality that the number of years we have lived often bears no relationship as to how “old” or “young” we are. Many of us now are seeking to find new ways of expressing the awakening of this new age of growth and self-discovery. Those themes permeate the Passover story and are reflected, in many ways, in our own lives. I hope you’re thinking about your life and asking yourself how
you are growing.

At Temple Beth Sholom, it is important that we welcome people of all ages to our Second Seder. If you are not planning on attending another Seder that night, please
join us.

Passover is a time of remembering that our people was oppressed in Egypt. And so we think about those who are poor and oppressed today. In the midst of Passover
preparations, please remember those who are hungry and struggling now.

We have wonderful expectations for a Happy Spring. Remember to help those who have less hope. If they feel that others care, it really helps.

Rabbi Scolnic