Passover

Mary Magdalene in the Cave

Jules Joseph Lefebvre

Last year before going to his brother's for the first seder, I mentioned to the husband that I found it strange that a high holiday celebrates (and is named after) the killing of thousands of innocent children (the Egyptian firstborn).  The husband was unthinkingly sadistic enough to repeat this - identifying it as my own question - at the seder table.  While that was momentarily awkward, it was also kind of awesome, since I stand by the question.

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Moral and ethical dissonance of the God of Abraham aside, Passover is primarily a see-family holiday in non-observant families, much like Easter has become for my family.  Yes, the husband's family goes through the motions of the barest of seder stories, and yes they keep kosher today and tomorrow (the husband doesn't), but this isn't a family who does Passover cleaning or observes any of the work rules around the holiday.  

Since this is a family holiday, I'll be seeing some of the husband's extended family for the first time in several months.  On the one hand, I'm queasily considering whether I'll get any negative/concerned comments about, "You've lost weight!"  On the other hand, this morning my weight hit its highest number in three months, right at the cusp of "minimum acceptable weight," and I'm literally having heart palpitations over it.  Cognitive dissonance: achieved.

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The date for Passover (like Easter) depends on the moon.  The full moon falls at 2:25 a.m. tonight, GMT, 10:25 p.m. EDT.  The March moon is known by various names, but it's generally considered the moon of intuition and inspiration.  Meh.

There is a pan-cultural ritual called "full moon purging" (though these days it's associated mostly with Wicca/neo-paganism).  You create a sacred space and release unwanted intentions, attitudes and fixations into a fire.  Tonight would be a super night not to live in a flammable Manhattan apartment.  I suppose I will have to improvise.