RED & BLACK … Easter Eggs On Passover Matzo?

Design by Sawyer Pennington, Underlying photo by Jon Tyson on Unsplash

red head assets.rebelmouse.io	I love how this year Good Friday and the first night of Passover fall on the same day, meaning Easter Sunday also overlaps with Passover! It’s like the rare times when Christmas and Chanukah are celebrated at the same time.
Black assets.rebelmouse.io	What makes this year even more unusual is Easter and Passover fall during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.
red head assets.rebelmouse.io	What are the odds of that? And that’s a rhetorical question. Please don’t start sending me statistics.
Black assets.rebelmouse.io	The numbers are not important. But, it is a much-needed reminder that, although different religions celebrate different holidays, we are similar because we all place importance on faith and tradition.
red head assets.rebelmouse.io	Says the woman who’s not a fan of holidays and wants to get them over with as soon as possible, sometimes even ignoring them.

Black assets.rebelmouse.io	It is not holidays that I dislike … it is how their significance has gotten lost by all the insincere celebrations. And, the commercialism.
red head assets.rebelmouse.io	Well, short of selling matzo, gefilte fish, and Passover honey cake, I’m not sure how you commercialize Passover.
Black assets.rebelmouse.io	But, do you understand the meaning behind the foods and the traditions? That is what is getting lost. And although Jewish, I have always tried to understand and reconcile many Christian holidays with my own beliefs.
red head assets.rebelmouse.io	To use one of your favorite words … why?
Black assets.rebelmouse.io	Why try to better understand other people’s beliefs to further my own knowledge? Why try to find connections to remind me that we may have more in common than differences? Or, why take the time to respect and appreciate other holidays and traditions?
red head assets.rebelmouse.io	I’m sorry I even asked.
Black assets.rebelmouse.io	So, why did you take that Comparative Religions class at Wake Forest? Which, I might add, you have told me countless times was one of your favorite classes.
red head assets.rebelmouse.io	Because it was required. And while I thought it would be interesting, I never expected it to be fascinating. It really opened my eyes as it made me realize that although the major religions of the world have many differences, they also have so much in common.
Black assets.rebelmouse.io	Exactly. So, what do you remember about Easter?
red head assets.rebelmouse.io	How when Natasha and Sawyer were young, they loved Easter, with its bunnies and candy. Between making and decorating colored eggs, buying those overly sweet marshmallow Peeps in seemingly every color under the sun, and you taking us all out for the Omni Hotel’s amazing Easter Sunday buffet brunch, it was always a favorite holiday.
Black assets.rebelmouse.io	I was talking about your religion class. I know Lent starts on Ash Wednesday and lasts 40 days in preparation for celebrating the resurrection of Jesus on Easter Sunday.
red head assets.rebelmouse.io	You’re Jewish; what else is there for you to know?
Black assets.rebelmouse.io	I am trying to find common ground since Jews do not believe in many of the “facts” of Christianity that are a fundamental part of Easter. But I do think, to some extent, that I have the meaning of Easter figured out.
red head assets.rebelmouse.io	Don’t take this the wrong way, but for the millions of people that celebrate Easter, I think they figured it out a long time ago.
Black assets.rebelmouse.io	I meant for me personally. Easter makes me truly appreciate my friends, as it reminds me that people are not all alike, and that some things have no common ground to be found. But, it does not mean that there cannot be love and respect.
red head assets.rebelmouse.io	I’m confused. Aren’t you the one that’s always saying how, if people realized that we have more in common, the world would be a better place? That when we focus on our differences, we tend to divide things, and people, into “right” and “wrong” and end up with “us” and “them”. Which nowadays seems to be getting worse, not better.
Black assets.rebelmouse.io	Finding similarities is very different from being identical. And, that is the significance of Easter for me. Because religion is about reflection and faith, it is a reminder that different is different – not good or bad – just different.
red head assets.rebelmouse.io	So, I’m almost afraid to ask. When you were growing up, before you looked for “meaning” in holidays, did you ever see any “connection” between Easter and Passover?
Black assets.rebelmouse.io	Do you remember Mom making egg salad from all those leftover Easter eggs?
red head assets.rebelmouse.io	I hate when you answer a question with a question.
Black assets.rebelmouse.io	Just answer the question.
red head assets.rebelmouse.io	Yes, of course. She was never going to waste all those hard-boiled eggs.
Black assets.rebelmouse.io	Well, I remember her putting that Easter egg salad on leftover matzo. Does that count as a “connection”?

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