For Oliver

**Author's note: This is my 300th post on this blog so that's exciting!**

Seder Plate (or to my younger cousin)

Charoset:
Reminds us that life is bitter and sweet.
Hard work and joyful reward
We find this duality in family, in friends
In books, movies, video games
There are many days of hard work yet but many joys too
How can any of us be free if some are still in slavery?

Parsley:
Reminds us of springtime
Of being the youngest
Of being the fullest of love
Reminds us of things that grow
Shooting up from the earth
Soaking in knowledge like rain
Reminds us of the sunshine a smile can spread across a day

Bitter Herbs:
And what joy is there to be found in spicy things?
Horseradish and weird pickle flavors
Fermented radish to season the gefilte fish
And raw onions for the chopped liver
How would you like to find a food that no one but your pop could love
And give it a seat at the table?
In these foods we truly find the meaning of passover welcome.

Egg:
What a small thing to contain so much potential!
What could it have hatched to be?
Who knows the kind of bird that might have lived inside?
What will you learn?
Who will you become?

Shank Bone or Roasted Beet:
We took something bloody and grim (the shank bone)
And we made it delicious (the beet)
We can grow up, change, learn new jokes, love new cats
And still honor our tragic past

Matzo:
You are the rock the table is built around
Without you we would be so angry, so hungry, so bored
You are the joy at our seder
The levity in our story about suffering
The crunch in our bland-ness
The passover meal depends on you.

Orange:
Maybe there is not a place for you yet
Maybe you still are trying to fit yourself into this big plate of tradition
The shoes of thousands of years of ritual are big shoes to fill
Don't worry, someone will fit a space for you
Squeezed between the herbs and the greens
And you will someday feel like you've always belonged.