We have olives on the Seder plate this year because according to the story of Noah and the ark, God was on the verge of destroying humanity because we were a mess. Noah and all the animals were on the ark as a last-ditch attempt to see about the possibility of humans creating goodness. As the story goes, Noah sent a dove from the ark in search of land, and she came back with an olive branch in her mouth as a sign the water had subsided, and that humans were going to be given another chance. Since then, the olive has become a symbol of hope and peace. Please eat an olive, while you hold the victims of war in your heart and read:

The Jewish community in Ukraine isn’t reclining tonight. They aren’t recounting the story of slavery, plagues and ultimately finding freedom. Instead, they are the ones that are running or fighting for their lives. Families are broken apart, displaced, and suffering. Instead of counting plagues they are counting their dead. Untold lives ruined. Homes, offices, loved ones, friends, pets… all left behind in a rush to live. Businesses and financial stability are gone. Literally no time for their bread to rise. Our people have been here before. Heartbreaking decisions made one at a time. The tragedy of lives ruined and the trauma that will live on for generations is heavy in the air, like smoke from the bombs and fires that burn nearby.