Synopsis

With the close of War II, 250,000 Jews languished in DP camps in Europe. In Palestine, turmoil reigned as British struggled to maintain order between Jews and Arabs even as they prevented Jews from entering the country. President Roosevelt promised the Arab Ibn Saud that the U.S. would not support a Jewish state, and the State Department was adamantly opposed to one. This was the gloomy picture in 1945. Then, in April of that year, Roosevelt suddenly died, and Harry Truman took his place.

Bible-believing Truman was sympathetic to a Jewish state, but not persuaded. He was worried about Arab oil, and he had legitimate fears of provoking a broader war in the Middle East. Plus, he was thoroughly alienated by “pushy New York Jews” and refused to meet any more Zionists.

Palestine was a powder keg, and a United Nations committee was formed to study the problem. It proposed “partition,” the creation of two states: Arab and Jewish. But would there be a two-thirds vote in the UN in favor? Would the State of Israel come into being?  Here is “the rest of the story.”

?My wife Arleeta and I hadn’t been to Florida together in three years. As “Yeshiva Week” 2022 approached, Arleeta, a devoted second-grade boys teacher, needed a sanity break. For the better part of the last two months Arleeta could be heard reciting a quiet chant when working into the wee hours on numerous school projects, or when dealing with a challenging parent. Her chant was “Going Florida…Going Florida…!” Being a perceptive person, I picked up on the idea that she wanted to go to Florida. Reservations were made and “points” flights were booked.

Vaping of e-cigarettes remains very popular among teenagers. Across the country, about 20% of high school seniors report that they are currently vaping. We do not know how this compares to what is happening in our community. Yet I see many kids in our community vaping, and wonder if they are aware of the health consequences.

As a parent and as a psychologist, my biggest worry is that kids who vape will develop nicotine addiction, more formally called tobacco use disorder.  Nicotine is extracted from tobacco, and is the active ingredient in most vapes. It is a stimulant that increases heart rate and blood pressure. Kids like vapes because nicotine improves alertness, focus, and memory. The problem is that over a very short period of time, nicotine can cause depression, reduce alertness and focus, and impair memory and learning. Many kids who start vaping report how difficult it is to make it through the school day or take a test.

Can you imagine sitting in your sukkah while it’s raining and still fulfilling the mitzvah? It is no longer just a figment of your imagination, Mr. Zev Steen says, as he regales me with the fantastically creative ideas and inventions of his Bnos Yisroel high school STEM students. This invention actually works, and the pertinent halachos have been discussed with Rabbi Heinemann.

Bnos Yisroel, TA, TI, and Bais Yaakov have all injected their curricula with a creative new class within the past four years, called STEM. STEM stands for science, technology, engineering, and mathematics and, according to Wikipedia, “is a broad term used to group together these academic disciplines.” Mr. Steen tells me, however, that his STEM class not only stretches the mind in math and science but also involves significant amounts of creativity.

Rumor has it that, when it comes to Purim, things were simpler in the ’70s and ’80s. Queen Esther, Mordechai, the King, and the Clown accounted for the most of children’s dress-ups, and mishloach manos were known to be sent on cellophane-covered paper plates. But as we know, our beautiful customs keep evolving, and Purim is no exception. “Themes” soon made their debut.

What is a theme? I would define it (not as per Merriam-Webster!) as the coordination of mishloach manos with the costumes of all the children and even the parents to make one grand, unified splash! And it takes some creativity and planning.

It was not a cold day, just foggy and rainy, and the streets on the way to Sinai were completely deserted, probably because it was January 1. My friend Batya* was in the hospital. I was pretty sure she had no visitors, and I thought she would appreciate one. So even though I wasn’t sure that the hospital would let me in, because of COVID, I decided to try.

Batya turned out not to be seriously sick, b”H, but by the time I got to her room, I had passed through a veritable halachic jungle. It is amazing how many electronic doors, appliances, and writing tasks there are to do in a hospital, even if you are just visiting! Almost every step I took in Sinai Hospital triggered another question in my mind.

Purim is one of my favorite holidays – okay, I love holidays, so I have a lot of favorites – and this year, with its two Adars, we get to think about Purim for six weeks instead of two. One of the things I love about Purim is reconnecting with people I haven’t seen for a while. The point of Purim isn’t to make you nuts (even if you put nuts in your shalach manos) or instill fear of the deadline. (Seriously, who can possibly get everything on their list done on time?) The point of Purim is to fill you with love of Hashem, community, friends, and family.

I also like Purim because my expectations are met. I expect to hear the Megillah (and I do). I expect to eat a crazy amount of food (and I do). I expect to drive around like a maniac delivering shalach manos, and guess what! I do. And at the end of Purim, I get to check off all those boxes. And I do. Purim means music and laughter and that special bond with people who are all trying to achieve a higher goal. Purim definitely has a special place in my heart.

For all of the creative souls who thrive on crafting clever packages and coordinating themes,  Purim is their time to shine! In the middle of Adar, these individuals take their place atop the pedestal of wonder, arranging gorgeous shalach manos, orchestrating a stunning seudah, and wearing the ultimate badge of creativity: a home-made costume.

Do-it-yourself costumes range from something simple, like running a ribbon through the top of a fabric curtain to make a cape, to such clever creations as tying a dozen men’s ties around your arms and claiming you are a tie rack. There are funny costumes, such as writing on a T-shirt “ERROR 404 – COSTUME NOT FOUND,” and “punny” costumes, like taping numbers to yourself and telling people that you are someone they can really “count on.”

When the editor of WWW asked if I’d like to write an article about shalach manos, also known as mishlach manos, I smiled, and I haven’t stopped smiling. In fact, every time I am worrying about something, if I start thinking shalach manos, I stop worrying (except about getting this article done on time). Why do I smile thinking about, preparing, delivering, and receiving shalach manos on Purim, when it’s such a busy day? I guess because shalach manos is a time of giving. 

When I moved to Baltimore, almost five years ago, I met so many wonderful people and discovered a network of chesed organizations, frum magazines, and well-stocked kosher stores and restaurants. I also found my favorite spot in our house: the window by the kitchen table. It faces the backyard and acts like a camera capturing the changing seasons, animal visits, and other scenes throughout the year.

This morning, as I sit down to a breakfast of a Goldberg’s blueberry gluten-free bagel with cream cheese, I roll up the blinds to the top of the window and breathe in the beauty of the fall foliage. A massive tree with orange and golden leaves rises above my neighbor’s fence and reaches almost to the azure sky. When the sun comes out behind a puffy, white cloud, the leaves of that tree sparkle and dance, holding on for dear life. Other, smaller trees shared by several neighbors still have their colorful leaves, but not the one tree in our own backyard.