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As Rosh Chodesh Adar rapidly approaches, Pesach preparations are in the air. We begin to think about preparing physically for the holiday with much vacuuming and endless trips to the Kosher for Passover aisles of the supermarket, or with shopping sprees to update our spring wardrobe and enter the holiday with a sense of renewal. We recognize Pesach as a time of cleansing and renewal in a physical sense, yet with some contemplation, this time period can refresh our connection with God as well, and help us foster a more meaningful and real relationship with Him.

The Ramban (Shmot 13:12) develops an approach regarding the centrality and importance of remembering Yetziat Mitzrayim on a regular basis. Pesach is the holiday during which we fully commemorate that remarkable historical occurance, replete with miracles and salvation; yet mitzvot like Kiddush, Mezuza, and Kriyat Shma keep our exodus from Egypt at the forefront of our religious consciousness. The Ramban explains why this is so: Yetziat Mitzrayim was a period in our history when God performed obvious, undeniable miracles on our behalf. He thwarted the rules of nature in order to save us, hence expressing His direct care and concern for us, and His involvement in our lives. Yet God does not perform such overt miracles on a daily basis anymore, and remembering that He is ever-present and involved in looking after us today is certainly more challenging. Hence, regularly remembering the miracles God performed for us in Egypt serves as constant fuel for our awareness of God's concern for us today as well.

The Ramban continues, pointing out that through our remembrance of the vast, supernatural miracles that occurred in Egypt, one will come to recognize all the smaller, "natural" miracles that occur in our lives today on a daily basis. Once one is aware of God's involvement in the world, one is more sensitive to the fact that all of nature is indeed miraculous. The quintessential example of the extraordinary miraculous essence of nature is found at the beginning of this week's parsha, Parshat Tazria, which discusses laws relating to childbirth. Even in today's reality when we are numb to the miraculous nature of sunrise, cherry blossoms, and human physiological functions, we are awed time and again by the miracle of creation of life and birth.

Pesach is an opportunity to renew our perspective of the ordinary, natural existence that we live, and to elevate it to one in which we are conscious of God's involvement. We can then use that awareness as a springboard to fostering a more meaningful relationship with Him, as we recognize that He cares just as much today as He did when he miraculously took us out of Egypt. May this Pesach season be one of physical and spiritual renewal for us all!

Adi received her BA from Columbia University in Middle East and Asian Languages and Cultures, and her MA from Yeshiva Unversity's Bernard Revel Graduate School in Modern Jewish History. She is also a graduate of Yeshiva University's Graduate Program for Advanced Talmudic Studies, and of Nishmat's Keren Ariel Program as a certified Yoetzet Halacha. Adi has taught a wide range of subjects, both in Israel and abroad, in varied educational settings. She made aliya in 2006, and currently lives with her husband and three children in Jerusalem.