When I think about Passover with my family growing up, I immediately smile. Passover seders have always been a big to-do; sometimes they were celebrated by having family and friends gather around the table at my parents’ house, other times by taking road trips to visit cousins up and down the East Coast. No matter where we were for seder though, I was always the youngest child.
As the youngest child, I have been responsible for the Four Questions for as long as I can remember. Year after year, it has been my job and year after year, I hope that some guest will be younger than me and take over. There have been years when I have been more enthusiastic to chant by myself as well as years when I have tried, usually unsuccessfully, to encourage others to join me so that I didn’t have to sing alone. Finally, this year, there are faces around the table that are younger than me and are eager to take over the job. But now what’s my job
Knowing all too well the fun, and, let’s face it, potentially embarrassing experience of having all eyes on you as the youngest child, I make a point to try and cheer the new question-askers on—a little youngest child solidarity!
I’m reminded of a scene from the Prince of Egypt, in which the Israelites are fleeing Egypt. As “When You Believe” plays in the background, the Israelites make their way to freedom. At one point, an older woman stops to catch her breath and then leans on a wall for support. Almost immediately, a young girl reaches out for the woman’s hand—giving her the support she needs to move forward.
As we celebrate Passover this year, I am struck by the strong generational ties that are embedded in our Story of Freedom. Our haggadah reminds us that, in every generation, we should see ourselves as though we personally had been freed from slavery in Egypt. Whether you are the youngest, the oldest, or somewhere in between, we each have a hand of support to offer those around us as we reflect upon the journeys of our past, and continue the journeys of our present and our future.
—Yael Farber, Rabbinic Intern