Planting Seeds at Passover
By Rabbi Katy Z. Allen
People often plant parsley seeds at Tu BiShvat in order to have home-grown parsley on their seder plates to dip in salt water during the seder. In Biblical times, the barley seeds planted at Sukkot had grown into barley that was harvested at Passover.
Passover in New England falls during garden planting time, a time when gardeners are busy planting vegetable and flower seeds. But what other kinds of “seeds” might you plant this Passover? Seeds of family connection? Seeds of love? Seeds of wisdom? Seeds of courage and strength? Seeds about getting along with those with whom you might not agree? Here are some ways that you might be planting seeds as you prepare for and experience your seder.
Food What is the meaning behind each dish you prepare, share or eat? Is it something new? If so, why are you adding a new dish? Are some foods you serve a family tradition? Do they give you a feeling of connection to a loved one who is gone? What are the messages and meanings, perhaps hidden, of each food?
Tradition Do you always do certain things the same way every year? What is the meaning to you and to others about each aspect of your seder? What is the impact of following your traditional-to-your-family way of having your seder? How do different people feel about each part of it? Does it bring comfort or cause conflict? What new traditions might you like to start? What seeds would they sow?
Family Connection Whether you are with your family or apart from them, either intentionally or due to circumstances, family connections are part of the seder experience. What connections do you cherish? What connections are difficult? What parts of the seder are most meaningful to you in providing connection within your family, or your chosen family? What pieces are most meaningful to others in your family?
As you approach Passover this year, what new “seeds” might you plant? In many families divisions as a result of the war may add onto existing tensions. Considering the impact of seeds that have been planted in the past and that flourish at your seder today, as well as new seeds to plant can help you find common ground and go beyond the politics to the underlying love and connections. To help your family gathering be the best it can be, considering each aspect of the seder through the lens of seeds can help you identify ways to build strength and resilience and a sense of connection.
Returning to actual physical seeds, a suggestion for a new ritual is to plant seeds together. Before lighting candles - or whenever works best for your family - give each person a pot of soil. Have a variety of vegetable, herb, and native annual flowers seed options on hand. Some easy-to-grow possibilities include lettuce, microgreens, radishes (in deep pots), basil, black-eyed Susan (Rudbeckia hirta), and partridge pea (Chamaecrista fasiculata). Invite each person to sow the seeds of their choice and speak of what the seeds they are sowing represent for them.
May all your seeds bear fruit!
Rabbi Katy Z. Allen is the founder and rabbi of Ma'yan Tikvah - Wellspring of Hope, www.mayantikvah.org