My friend, the musician R. Avrum Burstein, told me such a very Jewish story that it gives me no rest. Here it is:
In Jerusalem there was an elderly Jew by the name of R. Ozer. He was a devoted Breslev chassid, and very poor. Before Pesach he could be heard saying to himself: “Oyf Pesach vet zein, aber vie nemt men dem Pesach alein” – the Pesach products will arrive somehow, but from where do you get Pesach itself?
So R. Ozer would go and get a free loan from here and another loan from there, buy wine and matzahs, a few potatoes and some horseradish, a piece of carp and a few chicken wings and he would be ecstatic – he has the Pesach food – but what will be with the holiday itself? Am I ready for the yom tov of Pesach? Where will I get Pesach itself?
After all, this evening I have to behave like a prince. Am I ready? Are my heart and brain pure enough, like those of a prince?
Free!
Am I free?
Me?
Am I free of all confusion?
Are my wants and desires still limiting me?
We were slaves!!
And now, on this very day, am I no longer a slave to various social conventions?
Oyf Pesach vet zein, aber vie nemt men dem Pesach ilein?
Wishing you a happy and kosher Pesach,
Rabbi Zalmen Wishedski