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Monday, April 10, 2017

Feeling Adrift


While away Master arranged for our housekeeper to begin the process to ready the house for Passover, which is at least to mouse a horrible process of cleaning from top to bottom removing every speck of dust and possible crumb from every carpet fiber in the house using only a candle for light and a pair of tweezers. Ok, that last bit was bit of hyperbole, but you probably get the idea that it's an intense process. 

It isn't easy this year for any of us. Especially for Master (and our whole family), so that's why mouse is going the extra mile even though we aren't hosting, but it's hard since mouse isn't Jewish and wasn't raised with this idea. Now more than any year, mouse feels adrift and wishing she'd kept notes on what to do and when. it's the realization how heavily she relied on her mother-in-law for guidance.

As though he saw mouse breaking down, Master stopped the obsessing mouse was doing and told her to relax. He even sent her to bed early one night. He said we'll get there slowly. Just like that mouse felt him pull her back to where he is. He said he should have asked one of his sister in laws to send over a guid of sorts but really that was mouse's fault (although he didn't blame her). There was this arrogance she felt that she could just do this. It'll be easy she thought -- she's done it before, but that was always with the guidance of his mother and never fully on her own. Sure there are resources like books and youtube videos, but getting advice from someone who's done it many time is different. There are plenty of videos but few go into any meaningful detail. Most focus on the spiritual connection they feel with the holiday, which isn't wrong except that mouse needs details.


6 comments:

Roz said...

Hi Mouse, I can totally understand your worry, you will get there and I'm sure it will be perfect. Maybe SIL can still help and give you the information you need?

Hugs
Roz

Anonymous said...

Judaism can be practiced in so many ways. But in the end, it's the meaning not the act.

DelFonte said...

Showing my ignorance here, but how does cleaning at Passover differ from general Spring cleaning? (I once worked as a maid in a hotel, which saved my mother 'teaching' me how to clean)

mouse said...

That is basically what her sister in law (actually both of them) said to mouse recently.

mouse said...

They all did! It was wonderful, one even gave mouse a journal she kept the last few years of what worked and what didn't for her family. It is a valuable resource for mouse.

mouse said...

It is a highly involved process of removing everything from your house that contains or contained flour, yeast and other things. Cabinets must be completely emptied, crumbs removed (and even cabinets that contain canned stuff seem to all have crumbs in them). (mother in law, would take bundles of crumbs, and leave them for the kids to find on the last night of cleaning, when you search for the last remaining with a candle -- so not kidding about that).

Every speck of dust, because that can contain microscopic stuff...Pot and pans must be cleansed in a specific way or removed from the house. Dishes you normally use cannot be used for seder (usually one has a set of dishes used just for that time and everything that goes along with it). Foods are kept totally kosher. Anything non-kosher is removed -- weirdly it can be sold to a non-jew.

If you store items, sister in law said you cannot have access to it. So if you store those items in a seldom used closet, the closet door cannot be opened during passover at all.

But in the end the house is very clean...so there's that.