Beyond Redemption?

The basic mitzvah of any Yom Tov—and Pesach is the first of the Yamim Tovim—is simcha, to rejoice. One must look forward to Yom Tov with great joy, anticipation and happiness. So much so, that our rabbis forbade eulogies for 30 days before Yom Tov lest our joy be diminished during the festival. Dreading the onset of Pesach, or feeling exhausted by the time the seder rolls around, is not the Torah’s idea of simcha. Why not divert some of the time and energy spent in unnecessary cleaning to learning about the Haggadah?