for family members to approach a person recovering from an alcohol addiction and say that one glass of wine will not hurt, or that all four glasses of wine must be consumed because of the tradition. Alcohol-free Seder is an option for people who seek a safe space away from negative family disputes or influences.
“Everyone in recovery or wants to be in recovery is welcome,” he stated. “Anyone who cannot afford it can come for free.”
Although it can be difficult to advertise their Seder to the local Jewish community, Freimark has been successful in bringing people together, somethings in life-changing ways.
“We had a couple of wonderful miracles,” he said. “We had one where two people showed up, both from the same family, but separately. They had not been civil to each other for a long time and they reconciled at the Passover Seder.”
Freimark encouraged members of the local Jewish community who are in alcohol recovery to feel proud for attending a sober Seder and fulfilling their cultural tradition. It’s a big step toward changing and rebuilding one’s relationships with friends and family.
“One of the hardest things to do in life is change” he said. “But even more difficult than that is to get people who know you to recognize that you have changed.”
Author: Sean Woodard
Sean Woodard is a journalist for Addiction Now and serves on the Film Department for Drunk Monkeys Literary Magazine and Film Blog. Focusing on a wide variety of interests, Sean’s fiction, film criticism, and other writing have been featured in Los Angeles Review of Books, Found Polaroids, and Los Angeles Magazine, among other publications. A native of Visalia, CA, he now resides in Orange County. Contact Sean at seanw@addictionnow.com
