GOOD MORNING!  A father was at the beach with his children when his four-year-old son ran up to him, grabbed his hand, and led him to the shore, where a seagull lay dead in the sand. "Daddy, what happened to him?" the son asked. "He died and went to Heaven," the dad replied. The boy thought a moment and then said, "Did God throw him back down?"

And do you think it is going to be any easier answering your child's question about Pesach? Thirty days before each holiday we are directed by the Sages to prepare for the holiday. We are now less than 30 days and closing on Passover! The Seders are Saturday night, April 7th and Sunday night, April 8th. In order to transform what may have become an overly ritualized family reunion into a fountainhead of insight and inspiration, I cannot recommend highly enough, The Passover Survival Kit by Rabbi Shimon Apisdorf. It's for people with a lot more than four questions. Available at your local Jewish bookstore or call toll-free 877-758-3242 (you can also order the "Bag of Plagues" props -- there is a special: Bag of Plagues + an Artscroll Hagaddah for $19.95, including postage ). Check out the Aish website on Passover --www.aish.com.

And of course, it wouldn't hurt to also save the next four weeks' copies of the Shabbat Shalom Fax to have at the Seder table ...

Q & A: WHAT IS PESACH (PASSOVER) AND HOW IS IT CELEBRATED?

Every Jewish holiday is an opportunity to work on a certain aspect of personal growth. Succot is the time to work on Joy; Yom Kippur the time to work on Teshuva, spiritual accounting; Shavuot is the time to work on Kabbalat HaTorah, taking Torah seriously.

Passover is the holiday of Freedom -- spiritual freedom. For this the Almighty brought us out of Egypt. So, what is the essence of Freedom?

Is Freedom the ability to do what one desires unhampered and without consequence? That is license, not freedom. James Bond had a "license to kill," not the freedom to kill. Freedom means having the ability to use your free will to grow and to develop.

People think they are free when in reality they are often "slaves" to the fads and fashion of their society. Slavery is non-thinking action, rote behavior, following the impulse desires of the body. Our job on Pesach is to come out of slavery into true freedom!

All of the commandments associated with Pesach enable us to relive and experience the freedom our forefathers experienced in leaving the land of Egypt in order to serve the Almighty.

During all eight days of Pesach we are forbidden to own Chametz (leavened bread -- i.e., virtually any flour product not especially produced for Pesach) or have it in our possession. Why the emphasis on being Chametz-free? Chametz represents arrogance ("puffing up"). The only thing that stands between you and God ... is you. To come close to the Almighty, which is the ultimate pleasure in life and the opportunity of every Mitzvah and holiday, one must remove his own personal arrogance. The external act brings the internal appreciation; we remove Chametz from our homes and we must likewise work on the character trait of humility.

On the evening preceding Pesach there is a serious search of the home for Chametz. There is a custom to put 10 pieces of bread out so there will be something to find during the search. (I believe this is the source for the Easter Egg hunt amongst Christians). It is done by the light of a candle or with a flashlight. It is a memorable experience for the whole family!

Torah
Portion of the Week
Ki Tisa

Dvar Torah
based on Growth Through Torah by Rabbi Zelig Pliskin

The Torah states, "Six days you shall work and on the seventh day, it should be a complete rest sacred to the Almighty" (Exodus 31:15) What does it mean "a complete rest"?