#JustPassoverThings

The onset of spring to me means that Easter is on its way. My family gets together, an Easter egg hunt occurs, and my mom cooks a grande turkey dinner resulting in the greatest feeling of 'itis' rivaled only by that at Christmas dinner.

In Israel, an entirely different holiday is celebrated: Passover

Passover is a week-long celebration of the liberation of Jewish people from Egyptian slavery. Every year at the Passover Seder (ritual feast), families gather to read the story and remind them of what happened long ago.


The story from the bible begins with the 10 plagues that were inflicted upon those living in Egypt by God as a means to release the Israelite slaves from the Egyptian Pharaoh. The last plague was the most deadly, and involved the death of first-borns. The Israelites were instructed to mark their doorposts with lamb blood so that their homes would be passed over, hence the name of the holiday in English. Once the Pharaoh released the Israelites, it is said that they left in such a hurry that they could not wait for bread dough to rise.

In remembrance of what they had to endure, Passover marks a period of time where leavened bread is not eaten or sold in grocery stores. The sudden absence of many bread products from grocery stores can be quite shocking for two unprepared Canadians. Lucky for us, we were told that stores would stop selling bread, so we made sure to stock up for the next week to satisfy my bread-lust.

Matzah, an unleavened flatbread, is often seen eaten around this time. The doctor and I were lucky enough to be invited to a Passover Seder where we were learned of some Passover traditions and enjoyed delicious Israeli fare, including matzah ball soup!