I want to tell you about one of the happiest days of my life.
The story began 14 years prior when I met a middle school girl who wanted to be tutored in Judaic subjects. We hit it off right away and so I studied with her for her Bat Mitzva and we continued studying together throughout her high school career.
As you can imagine she was like a little sister to me.
She went to study in Israel and returned to the States ready to take on the world. She got her degrees and became a therapist.
She was an intelligent, beautiful, sensitive and accomplished young woman.
And she wanted to get married and build a Jewish home.
That part somehow didn’t go so smoothly.
She dated many, many, many people. (I know, I vetted each and every one!)
While all this was transpiring life continued.
My husband was and continues to be involved in Jewish outreach and education.
For 25 years he conducted a Beginners Service at our synagogue where people who were interested in learning more about prayer could join an interactive service. A young woman started coming. She was a shoe buyer for a major department store. We hit it off immediately, having a love of shoes in common. (Her moniker was shoequeen!)
She often came to our house for Shabbat meals.
After becoming good friends, this young lady mentioned that she had a brother who was visiting, and she asked if he could join us for a meal.
Her brother came to us a few weeks later and the meal was not half over and I realized that the elusive husband of my student had been delivered to my door.
I played matchmaker and set them up.
The day they got engaged was one of the happiest of my life.
It was truly happy day.

The Jewish calendar can give a person whiplash.
The past three weeks we have gone deeper and deeper into mourning, ending with the commemoration of Tisha BAv, the saddest day of the year.
Yet, a mere 6 days later we encounter the happiest day of the year.
Tu BAv - the 16 th day of the Hebrew month of Av.
What is this day representing?
The Talmud teaches us that no two days are as joyous for the Jewish people as are Yom Kippur and Tu BAv.
What do those two days have in common to bring us such joy?
Yom Kippur is the day when the Jewish people received atonement for the sin of the golden calf-basically commuting the sentence of their destruction for committing such an egregious sin.
Tu BAv is the day the people received atonement for the sin of the Spies, the leaders who went to scope out the Land of Israel and came back with a bad report. The people all cried on the night of Tisha BAv and that day went down in infamy for all time.
The decree that resulted from that sin was that the men of that generation would not merit to enter the land. Every year on the 9th of Av the men above age 60 would dig a grave and the next morning, 15,000 men would not arise from the grave.
Until the last year of the 40.
15,000 men got ready to die, but the next day they all remained alive. They thought perhaps they miscalculated so they did it again for the next subsequent nights until the 15 of the month of Av when the full moon appeared and they realized that the punishment was over.
Tu BAv became a day of rejoicing.
Just like on Yom Kippur we can rejoice because our sins have been forgiven, so too on Tu BAv our sins are forgiven and we can celebrate.
Tu BAv also developed another aspect of joy. Since it was the day that in Biblical times a proclamation was issued allowing the various Tribes of Israel to marry one another, (as opposed to only marrying within the Tribe), this day became associated with the joy of making matches for the sake of matrimony.
The Talmud states that in Tu BAv, young women in search of a marriage partner, would don white dresses and go out to the fields or vineyards where the eligible bachelors would be waiting.
It was the first social, and many Jewish homes were established as a result.
And that’s the biggest joy of all.
Day 315.
It’s hard to be joyous and rejoice when we are still deep in the destruction.
Yet, when we look at our brethren in Israel, they are still full of hope.
Marriages are taking place.
Chuppas pop on army bases as bride and groom, both serving heroically, get married.
I have seen reels of more than one female soldier donning a veil to accompany her olive green army fatigues.
Young couples reschedule their nuptials based on the dates they will have a reprieve from service, fully intending to go back when called.
It’s actually mind boggling to see the determination to emphasis joy amidst the suffering.
But they are young, and hopeful and please Gd they have a life ahead to build a joyous Jewish home.
But what happens when a young man falls in combat, leaving behind grieving parents and no wife or children, no legacy it would seem.
That’s when we see a whole other level of courage.
When parents have the vision and the fortitude to overcome the Tisha BAv and make it Tu BAv, that is the ultimate.
The Libman family lost their son Elyakim at the Nova festival where he was serving as a security guard.
They have initiated a project entitled Build a home in Elyakim’s memory, which is geared to helping singles find their intended. They want to make sure singles are not forgotten during these difficult times, and while their son will not be able to have a home, they are doing all they can to help many others have the opportunity.
That kind of courage is exceptional.
It is the melding of all the feelings, the joy and the despair and using the resulting energy to propel towards hope and building.
When I read about this family it reminded me of someone in my own.
An Israeli cousin of my mine was widowed tragically at a young age. She had two tiny children at the time.
A few years after her husband passed away she was blessed to find a second husband.
At the wedding, our family was shocked to see her former in laws, the parents of her first husband, in attendance. They loved their daughter in law and the grandchildren, and rejoiced in her new found happiness.
I remember being so awestruck by their strength.
To me that exemplified heroism as they chose to focus on the joy even though there was sorrow in their hearts.
That’s really what it means to be a Jew.
So next Tuesday, on Tu BAv, maybe think about making a match. Perhaps you know two people who would enjoy meeting one another.
You may make it the happiest day of someone’s life, and it may rank high as one of yours.
Shabbat Shalom and so much love!