Traditionally, the three meals that we eat to celebrate the Sabbath day begin with two loaves of Chollah to honour the manna that fell when when the Israelites were roaming the desert. For forty years after our Exodus from Egypt, God provided food every day in the form of manna, but only enough to eat for one day. Storing it was impossible, even forbidden some say, except for the Sabbath. After all, on the Sabbath, God rested and so do we. To make sure that His people did not go hungry though, a double portion of manner would be sent from Heaven the day before the Sabbath. And so, we celebrate with two loaves of Chollah.
The bread is usually covered before we eat and a blessing is said before we can tuck in, and Chollah covers to me represent the promise of good food and time spent with family, away from the rigours of school and later work. As a child I used to sneakily lift up the Chollah covers to better smell the bread before the Sabbath meals began. An act that my mother would somehow always notice, no matter where she was in the house. Even though I was scolded and told to wait for the brocha(blessing) before trying to get my hands on the food, I think my mother secretly enjoyed my little innocent mischief.
Anyway, I hope that you will appreciate with me the significance of these Chollah covers and celebrate with me the anticipation of our modern day version of manna!
