When some of us were children, this moment was the high point of the seder. This was the time we would search for (and always find) the afikoman, a portion of the middle matzah that had been hidden at the beginning of the seder.  We knew that the seder could not be completed unitl the afikoman had been found and redeemed with gifts so that everyone could be given a piece to nibble for dessert.

Even as children, we knew that it wasn't possible to find everything that was missing in life.  As much as we prized the gift we received for our bargaining, it was the hunt that we really loved, running through the rooms and turning everything upside-down.

The older we get, the harder the search becomes.  We aren't always sure now what we are seeking, what the afikoman means to us, which dessert will bring us a sense of completion and satisfaction.  Unlike during our childhood search, there are now fewer loving and reliable coaches in the next room giving us clues.  There are no guarantees that we will find what we are looking fo.  But this we know: it is still the search that is important - the looking, the running and the turning everything upside down.


haggadah Section: Tzafun