For my friends who aren’t on Facebook or Instagram, I wanted to share with you a little something that I wrote last night.
This has gotten such warm and lovely feedback that I think I may have hit on something many of us are experiencing!
Now, if you have already stocked your freezer with Pesach desserts, and simmered chicken soup on your stove all day, this post is *not* for you.
If, however, you’re a lagger, a procrastinator, a I’d-rather-be-doing-anything-other-than-getting-ready-for-Pesach’er, take heart: You are not alone.
You know what I’ve done for Pesach?
I’ve cleaned out my purse.
Okay, fine, I’ve also decluttered a few bookshelves, gone thru the coat pockets in our front hall closet, and organized my office.
(I’m certain there must be some commandment to organize your Sharpies before celebrating our exodus from Egypt.)
Seriously, though, I want you to know that not everyone is bustling around their already kashered-for-Pesach kitchen, whistling Chad Gadya.
Some of us are being pulled, kicking and screaming, into yomtov prep.
But no matter how we get there, we’re all going to sit down, one week from tomorrow night, at a seder table with – G-d willing – the people we love and who love us.
And while we’re sitting there, no one in my family will starve — even if I haven’t menu planned yet. Or shopped. Or cooked one single thing.
We’ll all get there. I promise.
*This hopefully reassuring pep talk has been brought to you by my own feelings of inadequacy and yom-tov-induced anxiety.
Who says that preparing for Pesach is only done by cleaning, shopping and cooking, Mara? You most certainly ARE preparing for the chag–what do you call researching and posting deals on pots, haggadas, foods? Wouldn’t you agree that sharing information about items that do and don’t need Pesach certification qualifies as pre-Pesach prep? You may not be ahead of the game in personal readiness but you are very wonderful at preparing the men and women who read your blog for the upcoming holiday. Thanks loads! (And you’re right–it’ll all get done by the time we light candles next Monday evening.)
There are many families who choose not to “turn over” until closer to Pesach for a whole variety of reasons, and none has to do with lack of organization, procrastination tendencies, or laziness. It might be because halachically, they’d just prefer not to be dealing with chometz and pesach in the same kitchen, or they want life to be a normal for their kids as it can be while they’re still in school.
I’m one of them. Yes, it’s hard to hear about everyone’s recipes that turned out beautifully or flopped. But at this stage of the game, I’m ok knowing that I’ve always benched licht on time on Erev Pesach, with no chometz in the house and boatloads of food in the fridge and freezer. So, be strong, everyone, it’ll happen.