Last year at this time I was wishing I had saved a lovely Haggadah done by a young friend years and years ago. Yesterday afternoon, it came to light as I was cleaning up files packed away in that time... if not for our fire, and the need to check through the old papers to see what was still salvageable from workshops and consulting work I had done, I might never have found it. Timing is sure interesting, eh? [Twilight Zone music fades in and out]

And shall I post the Haggadah? I was thinking of word-processing it anyhow, since I have just the one poorly-xeroxed copy. It was written to reflect the particular understandings of a young Jewish man I knew in the late 80's who was deeply engaged in what was, at that time, a frontier approach to diversity work that stretched all the way to the Arab-Istraeli conflict. So it is, how shall I say, slightly "alternative." And thus, I think, perfectly reflective of the folk process and this place we call... The Mudcat. (Twilght Zone music fades in and out, slightly affected by what we call... The Folk Process.)

And yesterday morning, as I was sorting AGAIN through the boxes of audio tapes to finish the assembly of the Gospel Tape Library, a cassette I had never unwrapped or noticed came into view, of Family Seder Songs. It may have been one the kids had before moving out, or it may have been given to Hardi sometime... these sorts of things seem to have ways of coming into our possession most oddly!

The songs seem to be in Hebrew and Yiddish, although each is introduced with an extremely brief explanation in English... so I can't post them, but if someone would like to transcribe them, I'll send it to you.

With some of the current forum negativity inviting our attention, perhaps this will turn out to be a thread that sets a good example of friendly celebration in the face of ugliness. It sure has begun that way.

I think it's too late to pull a Seder together for the Mudcat for this year, but maybe next year we could have a thread that acts as a Seder... like a running commentary on the Haggadah and memories of past Seders, what the parts mean, other pieces of the tradition that may be in people's hearts... "Next year, at Mudcat." Or maybe next year we will plan our spring Gathering to include Seder. Just a thought.

~Susan