Clearly, I can't worry about writing Life Changing Posts

Okay, so I realize that it is a long time between posts, and I also realize that this is because I feel like each one must be earth shattering and wonderful. (Which of course means that I think all of my posts to this point have been earth shattering and wonderful - deal with it.) I'm going to try to forget that and I hope you'll be understanding when I hit you with some more mediocre posts. Like this one perhaps?

Anyway, since my last post two big things have happened. The first! I celebrated my second Passover ever, this time with my friends Genessa and Karen and about a dozen of their friends. And Ilan, of course. It was really great! Last year was spent at the Persings and I don't recall the haggadah we used, but I imagine it was a good taste of what a family Passover seder looks like. Lots of friends and family around a big table, lots of delicious food, and plenty of back-and-forth about the order of operations and what was worthy of explanation (or not) to the less initiated around the table. (Thinking back, I may have been the only one who needed a lot of explanation, actually.) I really enjoyed it. I love long meals, and Passover provides all of the conversation fodder one might need without the pressure of thinking of things to say oneself. Everybody wins!

This year, Genessa and Karen wrote their own haggadah, using pieces from one that was created at Williams College and another used by Genessa's family growing up. There was a lot of poetry and opportunity for sharing of anecdotes (which shyness prevented most from taking advantage of) and many more besides me who didn't have a lot of experience with Passover. It took a lot of pressure off of me to pronounce anything correctly, which I really appreciated. It all just felt so. . . friendly.

I also enjoyed Passover because I was thinking about the plagues and (wait for it) things I heard recently from an archeologist about how there's a good chance that much of what is said in the Torah can be supported factually. For example, there was a lot of volcanic activity near Egypt in the centuries before and after the plagues would have happened, and that volcanic activity could explain rivers of blood (sediment from eruptions settling in rivers) and even frogs falling from the sky. The Torah is certainly not a historic document like text books are, but it's fun to think of it as an often fictionalized take on real events.

The second big thing that happened since my last post was a Shabbat dinner shared with none other than my Christian parents during their visit here in Oakland. More on that to follow!