Given
all that has happened over the past month and the reminders that I feel every
morning, the joy of Purim was a welcomed respite from the daily worries and
work. Having taken the holiday off, I was able to finally take some time away
from the office without anything that needed to be done during the day. While
we have plans for future years marking the celebration of the day with our son
and the community this year there were no such plans made. Right now, sometimes
the greatest joy can be found in not having to do something or be somewhere.
However,
we were able to take advantage of the day as my wife was also off from work
and, for the first time in too long, we had a quite lunch. Just the two of us
as we brought our son to the daycare that morning. Thankfully, the new sushi
place that we had found was actually pretty good and we were able to relax for
the afternoon just spending an uneventful meal together. We made sure to take
separate cars to the restaurant so that I could run some errands (rarely do I
have time to do these during the week) and my wife could pick up our son on
time. Nice to have a few things done early so we aren’t running around throughout
the weekend.
When
I returned home our son eagerly scurried across the floor not expecting to see
me for another few hours. That smile and that laugh still get to me. After washing
up and holding our son for a few moments and giving him plenty of hugs, it was time
to simply get on the floor and spend some time as a family. This is the pure
joy that this day has brought to us. Obviously not in the usual way but it is
the joy of family and the unconditional love for a child, an open willingness
to give or give up anything for them, that drives the meaning of this day home.
Since
then there has been a bit of a Purim hangover. While neither of us had to return
to work the following day and our son was home with us, there is something different
about the extra bonus time that we have together. Maybe it is because of the simple
fact that I was personally reflecting on the holiday during the waking hours
but it was a different day. This Purim, the freedom and joy of this day, is
something that we can build upon and truly make the meaning and joy of this
holiday a part of our son’s life and faith. Hopefully without the hangover.
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