וּבִשְׁנֵים֩ עָשָׂ֨ר חֹ֜דֶשׁ הוּא־חֹ֣דֶשׁ אֲדָ֗ר בִּשְׁלוֹשָׁ֨ה עָשָׂ֥ר יוֹם֙ בּ֔וֹ אֲשֶׁ֨ר הִגִּ֧יעַ דְּבַר־הַמֶּ֛לֶךְ וְדָת֖וֹ לְהֵעָשׂ֑וֹת בַּיּ֗וֹם אֲשֶׁ֨ר שִׂבְּר֜וּ אֹיְבֵ֤י הַיְּהוּדִים֙ לִשְׁל֣וֹט בָּהֶ֔ם וְנַהֲפ֣וֹךְ ה֔וּא אֲשֶׁ֨ר יִשְׁלְט֧וּ הַיְּהוּדִ֛ים הֵ֖מָּה בְּשֹׂנְאֵיהֶֽם׃

And so, on the thirteenth day of the twelfth month—that is, the month of Adar—when the king’s command and decree were to be executed, the very day on which the enemies of the Jews had expected to get them in their power, the opposite happened, and the Jews got their enemies in their power.

V’nahafoch hu: the opposite happened. Just when it was expected that the Jews of Persia would be destroyed, the opposite happened - it was the Jews who gained control over the Persians. It sounds like a fairy tale, and in fact Megillat Esther is a kind of fairy tale, but this year I am going to embrace it. Who expected the Ukraine to stand up to Russia the way it has; or so many of the world’s larger powers to work together? I’m sure if we were to look into our own lives, there are so many places where we expected the worst, but the outcome was great. I experience this often, whether it is in teaching powerlifting, or more importantly, in personal interactions. On Purim, we revel in the unexpected ending. If at all possible, we allow ourselves to be happy - even to have a drink or two along with a ton of hamentashen. We try to calm our frayed nerves by celebrating with friends. We don’t ignore the world’s injustices. In fact, through the Megillah, we read about them and maybe even take a close look at the misogyny and antisemitism; the dangerous leaders and the violence perpetrated by them. But then, we dress up, we bring gifts to others (shalach manot), and we contribute to a good cause - in our case, the JCA's HIAS Refugee Resettlement Project (matanot l’evyonim). Then we turn around and laugh with confidence at the very tyrants and leaders who bring havoc on the world. Like the iconic picture of a girl putting a flower into the barrel of a soldier’s gun, we change the message. 

The world is topsy-turvy enough, let us embrace the times when humanity shines and  when we watch out for one another. The goal is to be able to live in a safe and prosperous environment without having to destroy one another. The goal is not to kill the Hamans, but to convince them that our only chance of survival is when we care for one another. For whatever reason, this Purim I want to get in touch with my inner Herzl - im tirtzu, ain zo aggadah - if you want it, it’s not a fairytale. V’nahafoch hu: the opposite happened….

Shabbat Shalom.