As the second Pesach of the pandemic approaches, the Adath Israel Sisterhood presented a practical and stress-relieving virtual event featuring Mrs. Meira Spivak, author of “How to Make Pesach in Five Days.” Spivak is the director of Oregon NCSY and Camp Kesher, a growing summer camp in the Paciic Northwest. She also helps companies solve strategic problems through her Results Driven Innovation workshops.
As a mother of a large family, Spivak understands the stresses of everyday life, and is ready to laugh at them (when she is not stressed from them). It was this combination of humor and constructive advice that she brought to her audience, taking them through the processes of cleaning, cooking and enjoying the Seder—and most importantly, the planning necessary to accomplish all of these goals.
Spivak began her presentation by describing what many families who have celebrated Pesach at home have experienced in one form or another—the chaos, the stress and the exhaustion that often follows, similar to a child’s anxiety over getting a vaccine—making it much less likely for those who have put in the work to enjoy the results. She then went into detail describing a step-by-step plan to avoid the usual pitfalls that plague so many before the holiday, and peppered her talk with a number of useful tips that even the most seasoned Pesach hosts might find will help shave off several critical minutes, or even hours, of work (or stress).
From creating menus to making (and sticking to) cooking schedules to making time for children’s projects, every part of Pesach preparation was previewed, planned for, and put aside, with even enough time for every member of the family to take a well-deserved nap. “Meira’s presentation was really helpful,” said Shaina Rosen. “I liked how she created such a comprehensive plan for everything in advance so that all of the actual work could get done in such a short time.”
The Adath Israel Sisterhood organized the event as part of its ongoing series of pandemic-friendly community services and events, including a Shavuot journal, virtual Story Slams, an outdoor Paint Night, multiple shiurim, and more. Spivak’s book “How to Make Pesach in Five Days” is available for sale now at oregon.ncsy.org/pesachbook. All book proceeds go to Oregon NCSY.
By Yael Susser
