Another Passover In A Pandemic—It’s A Wrap—Dayenu
As the second Passover pandemic nears the end, and the last box of matzo is whittled down to crumbs, I’ wrote a year-in-review parody of “Dayneuâ€, the Hebrew name of a popular Passover song that means, “It was enough for usâ€. While we have experienced tremendous loss, some of us way more than others, we gained a lot as well, a new appreciation for living, breathing, taking care of each other, and Zoom. Dayenu reminds us to recognize that what we have is enough and to not take the miracles for granted.
So, here goes, it helps if you know the original lyrics, which can be found HERE.
PANDEMIC PASSOVER DAYENU
If He gave us Netflix
and not season three of Shtisel to binge on
Dayenu, it would have been enough
If He provided food on the table
and not offered us carryout from our favorite Thai restaurant
Dayenu, it would have been enough
If He temporarily shut down roads, airways, waters, to prevent the virus from spreading
and not rewarded us bluer skies, cleaner air, less noise and pollution, and a better environment for nature and animals
Dayenu, it would have been enough
If He filled the grocery stores with plenty of food
and not given us Shipt delivery service
Dayenu, it would have been enough
If He supplied pleated disposable masks
and not showed us how to make washable face coverings with Hanukkah menorah patterns
Dayenu, it would have been enough
If He gave us Shabbat and the Jewish holidays
and not invented the technology to join fellow congregants and community virtually, while wearing our pajamas
Dayenu, it would have been enough
If He built us temples
and not offered drive thru Shofar blowing
Dayenu, it would have been enough
If He educated our rabbis, clergy, leaders, and community organizations
and not created Zoom to keep us connected and inspired
Dayenu, it would have been enough
If He gave us rituals to guide us through life cycle events, from birth to death and every simcha in between
and not invented computers to attend a wedding, bris and shiva all on the same day
Dayenu, it would have been enough
If He provided us soap to constantly wash our hands
and not the liquid moisturizing kind in a pump that smells like jasmine
Dayenu, it would have been enough
If He gave us bleach to sterilize the door knobs, kitchen counters, and mailbox every time we touched it
and not the convenient disinfectant wipes that pull out of a canister
Dayenu, it would have been enough
If He gave us shelter
and not heat, air conditioning, and essential oil diffusers
 Dayenu, it would have been enough
If He trained doctors, nurses, and hospital workers to heal us
and not asked them to risk their own lives to save ours
Dayenu, it would have been enough
If He watched over front line heroes and first responders
and not opened our hearts to bring them pizza and show our support
Dayenu, it would have been enough
If He cried with us when we were in pain, lost, or confused
and not shown us how to do His work with compassion, empathy, and generosity
Dayneu, it would have been enough
If He made wise the scientists and pharmacists to research and development new medicines, treatments and vaccines
and not administered shots in arms around the world in record time
Dayenu, it would have been enough
If He brought forth teachers to care about their students
and not provided virtual classrooms
Dayenu, it would have been enough
If He empowered parents to juggle their careers and homeschooling
And not reopened schools before summer
Dayenu, it would have been enough
If he showed me the unconditional love of a dog
and not given me a second toy poodle to pick up poop after
Dayneu, it would have been enough
If He taught us skills to earn an income
and not shown us how to work from home
Dayenu, it would have been enough
If He gave us the hibernation of winter and the resurgence of spring
and not rainbows, yellow daffodils, purple crocus, and white blossoming pear trees
Dayenu, it would have been enough
If He blessed us with loved ones, family, friends, neighbors, community far and wide
and not kept us connected through social media while physically apart
Dayenu, it would have been enough
If He showed us generosity and kindness to strangers
and not returned the favor ten-fold
 Dayenu, it would have been enough
If He watched over people who had to close their doors during the economic shutdown
and not rallied us to support small local businesses.
 Dayenu, it would have been enough
If He believed in us
and not given us hope and miracles
Dayenu, it would have been enough
If He vaccinated me when it was my turn
And not on January 20, 2021, the day the first woman vice president was sworn in
Dayenu, it would have been enough
If He had a sense of humor
And not brought me a Shipt shopped named Moshe on Passover
Dayenyu, it would have been enough
And if you made it all the way to the bottom of this blog, thank you, here’s your afikomen (“dessert”)!
