Each year, as winter fades and warmth re-enters the world, we find ourselves drawn outside more often. For me, this is sometimes quite literal—my kids pulling at my pant leg to get us to the playground—but often I recognize it as something deeper.
There is something quietly healing about that first warm breeze, the return of color to the trees, and the feeling of sunlight on our faces after months of gray. It’s not just pleasant; it feels almost necessary. It is as if something within us has been waiting for this moment.
In the Jewish tradition, this seasonal shift is both honored and sacred. Passover, one of the central holidays of the Jewish calendar, is known in Hebrew as “chag ha’aviv”— the festival of spring. While Passover commemorates the biblical story of the Israelites’ journey from slavery to freedom, it is also intentionally aligned with this time of year.
The Hebrew calendar is even adjusted to ensure that the holiday always falls in the spring. Why is that? The Jewish mystical tradition offers a beautiful answer. The story told on Passover—of an ancient people enslaved and oppressed, moving from darkness to light, from constriction and hardship back to life—is also a story embedded in the natural world itself.
Spring is, quite literally, a season of liberation. The days grow brighter, and life begins to stir anew. Even our bodies respond: the added sunlight lifts our spirits, increases our energy, and gently nudges us back toward hope. What we experience outside mirrors something deeply human within us—a longing to emerge, to begin again, and to truly feel alive.
In Jewish homes, we associate this feeling with symbolic action. The preparation for Passover includes an intense, and sometimes overwhelming, ritual of cleaning (from which my sweat is still drying). We switch our dishes and remove all traces of leavened food, or chametz. While on the surface this is about dietary laws and ancient customs, beneath it lies a powerful symbolic message that speaks to all of us.
Passover—and spring itself—is an invitation to clear space not only in our homes, but within ourselves. It asks us to pause and reflect: What has accumulated in us over the past year? What feels heavy, cluttered, or stuck? What might we be ready to release?
In that sense, Passover speaks to something universal. We all understand the need, from time to time, to reset—to let go of what no longer serves us and make room for something new. During this season, I often encourage people to do something simple and deeply human: step outside. Take a walk, or simply sit in the sun. Breathe deeply and notice the quiet miracle of renewal happening all around you.
When we allow that returning light to reach us—physically, emotionally, and spiritually—we open the door to our own renewal. We begin to remember that even in difficult seasons, even when life feels heavy or uncertain, the possibility of growth and change is never gone.
Spring reminds us of this essential truth, and so does the message of Passover. Even when the seasons grow dark and cold, there is always a force gently drawing us back toward the light.
I wish you all a holiday season filled with renewal, hope, and peace.
David J. Lerner is the rabbi at Congregation B’nai Sholom-Beth David in Rockville Centre.
