Some Pesach Inspiration

The question many ask around this time, as we scour our entire house for the last traces of chametz, trying to rid our lives and our souls of the "inflated," risen flour, is "If chametz is so bad for our souls, why can we eat it the other three hundred fifty-some days of the year (exact number depends on the year and your location for the holiday)." If we work so hard to get rid of all of it, why is it ok 7 or 8 days later to go to the store and buy bread?

A parable from the ben Ish Chai:
In an old-timey town, the sheriff's out patroling one night and catches a thief red-handed. He puts the thief in handcuffs and begins walking him across town to the jailhouse. The thief is humiliated. Not only was he caught, but now the entire town sees him in cuffs, being led by the sheriff. This man senses a trace of empathy in the sherif's demeanor, and decides to capitolize on the moment. The thief pleas, "Sir, you have no idea how embarassed I feel. Not only did I commit this horrible crime and get caught, but now I am on display as a convict. Please, spare me some embarassment. For the rest of the walk to the jailhouse, could we switch places? I'll be the sherif and you will be the thief?"
The sherif agrees, takes the handcuff off of the thief, puts it around his own wrist, and hands the other end of the chain to the thief. They continue the walk in this manner, until they arrive at the back entrance to the jailhouse. The guard opens the door and the sherif makes a move to switch roles once again. The thief, however, stops the sherif and tries to act as though the sherif really is the thief and should be locked up. The guard seems quite perplexed and does not know what to do or who to believe. Finally, he realizes how to determine the true identities. The actual sherif will have something which the thief will not.
What is this that the sherif will have?

The sherif has the key.

So how does this relate to matzah on Pesach? All year long we can temporarily enslave ourselves to inflated ego and embellished perspective. But once a year, we abstain completely, to show that we still have control. We have the key and we are in control of our ego, our ego is not in control of us. If society is trying to lead our souls toward materialism and falsehoods, then matzah is the fence, once a year, keeping us within the boundaries of where we are supposed to be.

Chag kasher v'sameach!