Evergreen

Chapter 22

Darkness cannot drive out darkness, only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate, only love can do that - Martin Luther King Jr.

*

The sun was setting in Ferndale, displaying an array of warm colours - red, orange, yellow and even a touch of pink. But Everett wasn't paying attention to the sunset - his mind was on his upcoming date with Amelia. Would he hold her hand? Give her a hug? Maybe even a kiss?

"Hi Mum, just so you know I'm hanging out with Amelia at the park on Thursday," he said off-hand, expecting Mum to nod and write the event down in the calendar like she usually did. Instead, her face went into a frown.

"No, you're not," she said, and Everett stopped before he could set foot on the first stair of the staircase.

"What? Why?" he demanded sharply.

"Because that's the day of the Seder, remember?"

Indeed, he did remember the goings-on of the Seder, the special service that took place the evening before the Passover festival. His grandparents interrogated him about his life, his parents read verses from the Torah and everyone ate tons of food. That was the great thing about Jewish festivals - they always involved food.

"Oh, right, I nearly forgot about that," he said, then he had an idea. "Maybe Amelia could celebrate with us?"

Mum's eyes brightened. At last, her son was introducing his friends to his religious life! "Of course!"

*

Thursday arrived, and the whole Earnshaw family was swamped with preparations for the Seder. Food was bought, the Haggadah was found in the depths of the loft and the house was hoovered ready for Everett's grandparents and Amelia. At half 5, his grandparents showed up (predictably asking him about all aspects of his Jewish life) and at 6, Amelia rang the doorbell.

"Nice hat," said Amelia, pointing to Everett's kippah.

"Thanks," he said, and they sat down on the sofa together.

"So, I don't really know much about Jewish festivals," said Amelia, "I mean, I didn't even know that the Seder was a thing. What does it celebrate?"

"It celebrates the Jews' escape from enslavement in Egypt millennia ago," explained Everett. "You'll hear some of the story when we read from the Haggadah. It's pretty nuts."

The pair sat down together at the old oak table with Everett's family. Mum started the Seder with a prayer (as she always did) and then began to read a passage from the Haggadah that she had in her hand. Amelia was introduced to a crazy story about a Pharaoh who would not let his people go, and a God who sent plagues upon the Egyptians as warnings. Frogs, boils, locusts - and still Pharaoh would not let his people go! Dad read a part in Hebrew, which Everett kindly translated for Amelia by whispering in her ear, then Everett read a part in English (where Pharaoh had finally let his people go) and now it was Amelia's turn to read a passage.

"When word reached the king of Egypt that the Israelites had fled, Pharaoh and his officials changed their minds. "What have we done, letting all those Israelite slaves get away?" they asked. So Pharaoh harnessed his chariot and called up his troops..."

Everett was mesmerized by the alacritous way in which Amelia told the story, and he kept looking at her the whole time she was reading. Her eyes flickered up to meet his from time to time, accompanied by a blushing smile, though she was fully focused on reading her passage. When she got to the bit where the red sea parted, Everett grabbed hold of Amelia's hand under the table. It was so soft, and her grip on his hand was so gentle.