Finding Freedom in Estonia

B"H

-David from Narva, Estonia

Happy Passover to you and yours!

We are now amidst the 3,323rd anniversary celebration (1313 BCE) of our Exodus from Egypt!

Can you feel the freedom?

Of course I don't just mean physical freedom.

Freedom takes on many forms.

Freedom from addiction. Freedom from our fears. Freedom from sadness.

In general a Spiritual freedom from the shackles of this materialistic world...

As I've been traveling through Estonia ("Esto-what??"); from the capital Tallinn, to the outskirts of Kohle-Jarve and Narva (on the border with Russia),

I've been meeting face to face with the everlasting Jewish spirit that never dies. I've been witnessing true spiritual freedom at its best.

It's cold here about 10 months of the year. Snow & ice cover every inch of terrain. The trees bear no leaves.

The apartment buildings look gross and smell worse. The country's history with the Jews isn't one to fondly remember.

There is one synagogue in the entire country. Most cities (like Kohle-Jarve where we made our Seders ) boast 100 Jews at most (compare that to 100,000 in San Diego alone :)

And yet Jews flocked to our Seders; young and old. We probably met over 60% of the community!

They were interested and excited. My friend and I spoke to them about the exodus from Egypt, both then and what it means today in our lives.

Stories were woven in, along with singing and dancing.

And you had the feeling that you were part of something special.

Here, in the middle of nowhere, far from the comforts of warm, sweet home on the other side of the world;

5 miles from a once major concentration-camp, in the freezing cold, we were joining with our fellow Jews and experiencing the freedom of the Jewish soul.

A soul that is "literally a piece of G-d Above." (Tanya, Ch. 2)

Throughout history the Jewish body was beaten and imprisoned.

But our Jewish soul was always free. That could never be imprisoned by any force.

A few hours before the 1st night of Passover, we met up with David from Narva, one of the city's only Jews. We put up a mezuza on his office door in his auto shop,

and danced together to celebrate. When he saw us praying with Tefillin on, he asked us if he could pray with us, even though he had already prayed that morning.

I gently told him that he needn't pray with Tefillin twice in 1 day, all the while marveling at the fact that I have to beg many to put Tefillin on once a day!

David, it so happens, had his circumcision done earlier that year, at the age of 48, in St. Petersburg. He practically begged the Rabbi to have it done.

He has a prayer booklet in Russian, and listens to the prayers and songs online to learn the tunes of the melodies.

As we enter the last days of Passover, with the spiritual energy of freedom it contains,

let's try and hone in on something we'd like to improve on, to feel more freedom from.

Our physical surroundings and social setting may feel cramping and imprisoning at times.

But our powerful souls inside can transcend any obstacle or situation we find ourselves in.

For as I witnessed here in Estonia, true freedom lays not in location or situation, but in ones mindset.

A Joyful demeanor and more sensitive, spiritual outlook can

be attained by one and all - wherever & however we find ourselves in.

This Passover let's choose freedom.

Shabbat Shalom and a Happy Passover!

Daniel

Tallinn, Estonia