The holiday of Purim is almost upon us. This coming Saturday night and Sunday, we celebrate the reversal of the decree of annihilation that was directed at the Jewish people.
The story of Purim took place in the Persian empire in around 350 BCE. The King Achashverosh threw a lavish party to celebrate his success. In the midst of a drunken rage, he orders the Queen Vashti killed. When he sobers he realizes he is alone and begins a nationwide beauty pageant to find a new wife. Hadassah aka Esther, is brought against her will to the palace. She doesn’t reveal her Jewish identity. Despite her desire not to be the Queen, her beauty captivates the King and she is chosen. Her uncle Mordechai tries to watch over her from the palace gates. His refusal to bow to honor the King’s trusted advisor Haman provokes Haman to such a degree that he plots to kill the entire Jewish nation. With genocide looming, Mordechai requests that Esther plead the case of her people. When things could not look any bleaker, and destruction of the Jews is inevitable, there is a complete turnaround.
Mordechai who was destined for the gallows is feted, led through the crowd on the king’s horse, being heralded by Haman himself. The gallows that were erected to hang Mordechai, become Haman’s final destination, and the war against the Jews, the one that is meant to do them in, becomes a victory battleground for the Jews and many non Jews actually convert out of awe for the Jewish people.
It’s a complete turnabout.
The time that was meant to be full of mourning, becomes a time of joy and celebration.
Everything is upside down, in the best way possible.
May the Purim miracle of sorrow turning to joy, the turnabout and the upside downness of despair to joy, become our new reality.
Everything is quite upside down now.

Lessons from the war.
Jwcatlanta just returned from a unity mission to Israel.
We went to bear witness, volunteer and stand shoulder to shoulder with our sisters and brothers.
It was a deeply emotional and moving trip.
Everything was so upside down.
People who went to a music festival to celebrate peace were brutally murdered.
Young adults who were starting off lives full of promise, were gunned down in their living quarters with enough ammunition and firepower to take down an army.
Families who chose the simpler kibbutz life which allowed an expansive living with lots of space and greenery, are cooped up in hotel rooms, sometimes a whole family in one room.
And young Moms are having to raise their children and deal with the home front, alone, as their husband’s fight for their very existence on the battlefront.
On Purim we read the Megillah, the scroll, that chronicles the whole story.
One of our children is an avid reader.
He has a strange habit of reading the end of the book first. He claims he can’t stand the suspense.
When we read the Megillah we aren’t allowed to do that.
We have to read it in order.
Because when we do so we cannot miss the perfectly aligned turnaround that unfolds.
All that portended bad, became good.
It becomes more than evident that Gd, Who is not mentioned, is pulling the strings and flipping the story.
The very middle sword of the Megillah is “shealiti”, my request.
This refers to Esther’s request to the King to save her people from destruction.
Esther is the one sent by Motedechai to begin putting on motion the turnabout.
Because Mordechai instructs Esther to go plead the case of the Jews to the King. She is ready to take her life in her hands by going to the king without an invitation, but she first asks that all the Jews be gathered and then pray.
Esther understood that the future of the Jewish people rested on the presumption that we would be unified as one. So she makes an instruction that all the Jews should gather together and pray.
Esther understood that it was the one/two punch of national unity and prayer were the prime methodologies needed to compete the turnaround.
On our trip to Israel we saw so much love and unity.
People of all backgrounds were unified in their care of another.
They are answering Esther’s clarion call.
It will bring about the turnaround.
While on the army base of the elite Maglan I was talking to a Lieutenant Colonel. We were having a ridiculous conversation. I was trying to thank him for his service to our country and he kept trying to thank me for coming. He told me it made him feel so good, not as alone anymore, so warm inside, knowing that American Jews were coming and cared. So I kept thanking him and he in turn kept thanking me.
It was so upside down.
And since when does a hardened army man feel so warm inside, that’s certainly upside down of his MO.
Our group was also given the opportunity to help a farmer who did not have enough manpower to plant his crops.
This city girl planted melons in the beautiful soul of the land of Israel.
If that’s not s turnabout, I don’t know what is.
The middle word of the Megillah is a word of beseeching, a prayer.
In order to bring about these incredible miracles we need to see each other, be there for each other, and we need to pray.
Today there was an international call to prayer.
Jews all around the world came to utter the Shma, the prayer which is our calling card, in unity.
Esther had to step up to her moment, and the ramifications were eternal and life saving.
May we, in turn, be blessed with seeing a miraculous turnaround now! and bring home the hostages and send home the displaced and rebuild the destruction.
Have a truly Happy Purim.
Shabbat Shalom and so much love.