Dear all,
This stretch of Passover is known as Chol HaMoed—the days between the holy festivals that frame the beginning and the end of the holiday.
But the Hebrew carries a tension worth noticing. Chol doesn’t just mean “intermediate.” It means ordinary. These are, quite literally, the “ordinary days” set between moments of sanctity.
And I’m not sure I accept that so easily.
Because what if the distinction isn’t about the days themselves—but about our attention?
After all, every day holds the possibility of something extraordinary, something sacred—if we are willing to notice it.
This past Monday, many of us in Los Angeles stepped outside to witness the launch of a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, its contrails streaking across the sky in a breathtaking display.
And that very same day, my son stood transfixed by the slow, determined path of an ant across the pavement. And my daughter paused, quietly captivated by the delicate flutter of a butterfly.
Holiness is not confined to the edges of our calendar. It reveals itself whenever we make space for wonder—whenever we choose to see.
So perhaps Chol HaMoed is not a compromise between sacred and ordinary.
Perhaps it is a challenge.
To take what we call “ordinary”…
and, through the simple act of paying attention, allow it to become extraordinary.
The question is not whether holiness is present.
The question is: will we take a moment in time to notice?
With love and Shalom,
Rabbi Zachary R. Shapiro
