We don't need to support oppression for our own satisfaction. By ignoring the plight of others, we ignore the basic needs of man. We ignore the message that we are intrinsically saying they don't count. We all count.

That means we are all responsible for the choices we make when interacting with others. It is said at Passover, 'if even one person is enslaved, we all are.'

Martin Luther King spent his entire life trying to free his people from the oppression of white supremacy and the suffocating laws and expectations that kept people down. The Dalai Lama works tirelessly for the Tibetan people and for mankind to be free of oppression, both physically and spiritually. Repression around the globe is endemic and we must all do our small part to stop the pain. We all have a responsibility to do something about it. Your pain is my pain because we live in the lives of others.

Passover in the Jewish tradition is our yearly reminder. We sit at our Seder table and recite the story of the Exodus. We talk about the present day and we talk about our enslavements. Too much TV, too much work, too much alcohol, too much eating, too much negative thinking. These are just some of the ways we are enslaved.

Think of something you'd like to break free from, and when you're done, write it down and make a promise to yourself that you will make an effort this year to change it. You see we all have them. I'm enslaved to my work right now. I can't let it go for a day, or if I do, I feel guilty that I should be doing something. I'm exhausted a lot of the time building my business, making the connections, getting exposure for what I'm doing. No one is cracking the whip except me. Do I need to break that habit? Probably. The world will keep turning no matter what I do.

Freedom is a choice many do not have. Whether it is self-imposed or imposed by others, freedom is a gift and a natural-born right. We all have the right to be free from bondage.

When Paul Robeson sang Let My People Go, you could feel the entire weight of that request. It was a cry for release. A cry for humanity.

Humanity. The words compassion, generosity, acceptance, tolerance and diversity come up for me when I consider that word. We are ALL entitled to our humanity. Our right to be whatever it is we want to be, however we want to be, as long as we generate respect for the rights of others to have the same privilege. We should all have the freedom to live without someone else telling us how it should be.

The holiday of Passover is a Jewish holiday, but it's a world holiday. It's a time to consider if we truly are free, and if not, we have the opportunity to change it today. We end our Seder with a statement "Next Year in Jerusalem." It is a saying that encompasses the idea that we can all live in harmony. We can all find peace in this world.

I wish you Hag Sameach. A good year.

Be the best you can be for yourself and you will be the best you can be for others.
Let us live in peace and harmony NOW.

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