Ten Plagues would have been enough, Dayenu!

Is Covid the Eleventh plague?  Thousands of years ago Hebrew slaves quickly left Egypt to escape the Pharaoh's oppression. The success of escape was time-sensitive and basically, the Jewish people had to pick up and leave their homes immediately. Some were in process of baking and Matza symbolizes that there was no time to allow baked bread to rise. This becomes the primary food staple consumed during the eight days of Passover. 

The seder meal is a dinner to commemorate the escape and there is symbolism for each event from this time. The ancient Hebrews were enslaved under the tyranny of Pharoah.  Moses, the infant of a slave, was sent by his family in a raft to be freed.  He was found and raised as the Pharoah’s “stepson” when found by his wife who was childless. She raised him to become a great leader.  As he grew, he learned of his Hebrew heritage and became the “Chosen One” to bring his people to freedom.  As the Exodus occurred 10 plagues were set upon the Egyptians to secure a safe departure.  

Each year the Jewish people gather to tell this story to our children.  We often reflect and relate it to more contemporary times.  It has been a family tradition to gather with immediate and extended family for a Seder dinner to honor this celebration. The Seder dinner has been going on for thousands of years and continues to be shared with future generations. Many religions have seders as well to share the ideas of escapes to freedom. A focal point of the dinner is the Seder plate placed on the dinner table with foods representing the exodus. In the center of the Seder Plate is a cup of wine for the Prophet, Elijah.

The Seder has always been part of my life and there are many great memories I have from growing up.  As a child, I remember going to my Grandma Sarah’s every year in Cambridge for our festive meal.  We would arrive early to prepare the food for the Seder plate.  One of my favorites was the “charoset” which is a mixture of apples, walnuts, and wine to symbolize the bricks the slaves used to build the Pyramids.    We would also prepare foods such as bitter herbs to resemble the plagues. 

A highlight of the Seder meal was Grandma’s matza balls. They were a bit sweet and very fluffy and so delicious that nobody could eat just one.  Of course, we also had brisket and other amazing treats throughout the dinner.  

One tradition of the Seder is to welcome guests old and new and to leave a place for a stranger who may appear. Hospitality and welcoming are very important to most Jewish homes. The dinner celebrates redemption. There is a myth that Elijah the Prophet tests each Jewish family’s hospitality with a quick visit.  When it was “time” for Elijah to pop in, we would open the porch door and sing a welcome song.  My grandfather would slightly shake the table and say, “Elijah just had a sip of wine”. The running joke was that he probably got drunk taking a sip at every Jewish home. He stayed for a minute or two until it got cold, and we had to close the porch door. There was nothing that could keep me away from this dinner.

As I grew up and my parents and grandparents aged the tradition of holding a seder became mine. Since the birth of my firstborn, Greg we hosted this dinner.  Unless I was visiting my brother in Baltimore, the holiday would be held at our home.

During the first year of Covid, we were all in quarantine and the guest list was limited to our immediate bubble. We did a virtual seder with my brother and cousins to keep the tradition alive. Last year, we were in process of selling our family home and the tradition moved to our new residence.  It was again much smaller with the limited bubble of participants.

This year I had planned to go to visit family in Baltimore for the Seders.  A few nights ago, I attended a dinner party and subsequently learned one of the guests tested positive for covid the next day. This was my first direct exposure to someone with Covid. 

I now need to quarantine, and it is too risky to travel. I have been self-testing with negative results so far, but it is too early to determine if I will get a covid.  The earliest recommendation per the CDC for a PCR test is day 5 which will be Friday, the day of the first seder.  The results won’t come in until the Seder has Passed over. 

This will be the first time the thread of gathering for a seder with my family will be broken due to Covid risk. I am saddened by this and am hoping this is an anomaly and I don’t get plagued with Covid. At the end of every Seder dinner, it is traditional to sing the song Dayenu (which means it would have been enough) and to say, “Next Year in Jerusalem”, wishing for the pursuit of freedom in the Promised Land.  This year it may also be appropriate to add “Next Year without Covid”.  Wishing you and yours a Happy and Redeeming Passover.

Wendy is a Realtor and Freelance writer residing on Cape Cod. She enjoys networking and writing to connect her ideas and curiosities with people she meets.  Her first book, Coffee Connections: Finding Common Ground Through My Daily Brew was published last fall. She welcomes your comments.