By: Stephanie Geller
Chief Culture Officer
I have been given a gift from JEWISHcolorado through the Jewish Learning Collaborative to study Torah with an educator every week. This week before Pesach, my teacher, whom I also consider to be my dear friend, was offering ideas of how to make our seder more meaningful. She suggested it would be interesting to ask each guest to share just one thing they would bring with them if they had to leave their home at a moment’s notice. I asked this question at our seder, and not surprisingly, the answers people gave were very personal and offered insight into what objects are the most meaningful to them in their lives. After our seder was over and I returned to work, I read Parsha Beshalach, Exodus 13:17-15:26, a special Parsha that we read for Pesach. Upon completion, I realized that my answer to this question had changed, and my new answer would have been very surprising to our guests. I thought to myself, I don’t think anyone would have ever imagined that if someone asked me this question, I would respond, “I would bring a hand drum.”
When the Israelites fled Egypt, feeling scared and uncertain, they didn’t even have time to let their bread rise, yet, amidst this chaos, Miriam the prophet grabbed and brought with her a hand drum. We know this because after Moses leads the people out of Egypt and they are safely on the other side of the Red Sea with the threat of Pharaoh and his army safely behind them, the people rejoice. To praise God, Miriam, joined by all the women with her, brought out their hand drums and started to chant.
As we prepare for Yom Ha’atzmaut in May, it is impossible not to consider how to appropriately celebrate Israel’s independence while 59 hostages are still held in Gaza and rockets are being fired hourly. Yet, all around the world, we see people holding signs and chanting, “We will dance again.” We see victims of the horrific events of October 7th and hostages that have returned showing resiliency through music and dance as beautiful expressions of life and freedom. They are showing us the way to move forward just as Miriam did in Beshalach.
This week, we reflect on how the Jewish people were enslaved for 400 years before God freed them. Despite hundreds of years of oppression, our people have never given up hope that one day they would be free, singing and dancing together. To honor our Jewish tradition of Tikvah (hope), if I am ever asked if I must leave my home quickly, under duress, and can only bring one thing, I will give an answer filled with hope and possibility: “I would bring a hand drum.”
Please email Stephanie Geller at sgeller@jewishcolorado.org with questions or comments.