The Jewish calendar beckons adults and children alike to start choosing their costumes. As Purim is around the corner, Amazon carts fill with masks, capes, wands, and crowns. Purim is a holiday of surprise, a reminder that what we expect might completely be upside down by the end of the night. It’s a holiday where for a few hours, you can choose to be anyone or anything that involves a different costume or mask.
Will you be Queen Esther, embodying courage and grace? Perhaps you’ll choose Mordecai, embracing the qualities of reliability and determination. Or maybe you’ll be something entirely different like a robot, dinosaur, or referee, pining for the characteristics of creativity and curiosity. While costumes allow for escape, they also sometimes reveal which aspects we might want more of…a chance to explore being brave, fearless, funny, clever, or silly.
The name Esther is said to mean either “hidden” or “star.” Put together, the holiday of Purim teaches there is a hidden light within each of us waiting to be revealed; a quality yet to be seen but exists, nonetheless. This just might be the year where your boldness, sensitivity, humor, or (you fill in the blank!) is needed the most.
Let your costume linger and the qualities that accompany. God is constantly working to help us bring our inner light out into the world. Let your light shine.
Shabbat Shalom
Rabbi Nicole Guzik is senior rabbi at Sinai Temple. She can be reached at her Facebook page at Rabbi Nicole Guzik or on Instagram @rabbiguzik. For more writings, visit Rabbi Guzik’s blog section from Sinai Temple’s website.
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