I was sort of preoccupied with other stuff yesterday, and forgot to wish all of you a Happy Purim! It's not too late, though. At least not if you happen to live in an ancient walled city.
Today is "Shushan Purim." Way back when, you see, the Jews in Persia narrowly averted a government sanctioned massacre by winning the permission of that same government to defend themselves. It's an intriguing story, including great heroism on the part of Esther, the Queen, and great evil on the part of Haman, the Prime Minister. At the end of the bloody day in question, the Jews prevailed, Haman and all of his sons were hung up on the gallows and the Jews celebrated their victory with (what else?) a feast. Because the battle in the walled capital city of Shushan lasted a day longer than it did in the rest of the realm, the feast there was celebrated one day later. And so, even now, Purim is observed a day later (today) in walled cities than it is everywhere else (yesterday).
Happy Shushan Purim! And may the fate of Haman and his sons serve as an inspiration in more, um, current conflicts.
