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The band Blondie had song lyrics that went something like this: "One way or another, I'm gonna find you, I'm gonna get you, get you, get you..." For the sake of this post's title, I changed "way" to "day"!
The first days of Pesach were over in Toronto over three and a half hours ago. This year it was somewhat more difficult in terms of nuances of the holiday because Shabbos got in the way of Yom Tov preparation, chametz got in the way of Yom Tov preparation, and particular halachot got in the way of Yom Tov preparation. But we learned all the ins and outs, all the particulars to observe to get us to the start of Yom Tov, which took place on Saturday p.m. after Shabbos was over.
In spite of having two main holiday markers -- two seder nights -- these past few days have been somewhat of a blur for me, with one day becoming like the one before it and the one after it. I've been home from work since Wednesday, doing final preparations, although my good -- no, my wonderful husband -- had done much of the prep work himself, taking off from work a few days before me to set everything up in the kitchen. How many women are lucky enough to find men like this, who also cook and bake wonderful delicacies for a seder meal? I came home from a medical appointment on Wednesday to find that my husband alone had shlepped all our dishes and Pesach accoutrements from our basement crawlspace, took them upstairs, set everything up in the washed out kitchen cupboards, putting away the daily dishes and cutlery, setting up the counters and the stove and oven and sinks for Pesach use. A gift from G-d this husband of mine? Perhaps. I think I'll keep him!
Early last week had been beautiful, and hot, and summerlike. But the forecast for Friday through Monday (great...just what I needed for Shabbos and Yom Tov) was cool weather and rain for the four days. And this time the weather forecasters knew exactly what they were talking about. We were homebound for all of Shabbos, and after Shabbos, put on the layers of rain gear, including rain boots, slickers, ponchos, plastic covers on strollers and wagons and set out for Seder #1, a 40 minute walk from our home. Seder #2 was hosted by my husband and I at our home, so no need to go out again with the children late at night. Today, we donned the raingear once more to make a 1-hour trek to a sibling for lunch, decided not to wait till Yom Tov was out to go home, and three out of five of us, marched home after six o'clock, donned in raingear and making the one hour return trek...trying to walk between the raindrops, and failing miserably!
Yes, it's nice to spend a Shabbos or Yom Tov with family and friends. It's nice to have a "long weekend" and miss work for an extra day or two. But in circumstances, such as the past few days presented themselves, one day blurs into the next -- socialize, eat, sleep, socialize, eat, sleep...[look out the window upon awakening to check if it's raining outside]
I'm heading back to work tomorrow, with hard-boiled egg, juice box, matzoh sandwiches, fruit, salad, macaroons in hand. I know it'll be Tuesday, but I'll think it's Monday, and when the end of the week rolls around I'll be pleasantly surprised momentarily, because I'll have forgotten that we're already at week's end. But then I'll quickly be reminded because I'll know that cooking will be happening for Shabbos and Yom Tov yet again.
Shabbos. Yom Tovs. Cycles. Isn't that what life's all about?
