PURIM

Here’s a nice Jewish holiday. It’s fun, it’s joyous, it commemorates the time we didn’t get exterminated in Persia. . . let’s eat. Actually we do eat on Purim. Hamantaschen. A sort of triangular Danish/rugelach-type thing with a delicious filling of prunes. Yummy. Seriously, they’re good and not always filled with prunes — sometimes they are filled with apricots. The main story of Purim is the story of Esther and her cousin Mordecai. Esther was made Queen, an easy jump from Jewish Princess. Of course the King who made her Queen didn’t know she was a Jewess. Seems hard to believe, especially since she never accepted the first table they were shown at the restaurant, she designed a palace with no bedroom and no kitchen, she wanted Chinese food every Sunday and boy did she shop, but never paid retail. Anyway, Haman, the evil advisor after whom the taschen are named, wanted to kill all the Jews. What else is new? But Esther convinced King Ahasuerus not to do it and while she was at it, she told him he should hang Haman, which he did. This Jewish holiday is in the month of Adar except in leap years when it’s in Adar II. By the way, there’s a fast involved with this holiday to commemorate Esther’s three-day fast in preparation for her meeting with the King. Then we are commanded to eat, drink and be merry. So have fun!!