One of the third grade teachers was kind enough to extend a
Purim invitation my direction.
The students brought guests, filling the classroom with lots of Moms, Dads, and Grandmas.
In keeping with the carnival-type atmosphere of a true Purim celebration, participants arrived with masks. Some were fabulously ornate and others were very simply constructed. Mine was of the invisible variety.
From behind their homemade disguises, attendees greeted one
another with the morning Hebrew salutation “Boker Tov!” Mixing it up a bit, seats were swapped along
with the greeting.
Showing the guests how a usual day begins in 3MR, a sharing
time was enjoyed during which three students and one brave parent were prompted
to share about a time when something was lost. 
A Purim festival commemorates the celebration which took place at the end of the biblical story of Esther. The main antagonist in the book of Esther is the King’s evil Chief Minister, Haman.
Revelers
soon had strips of blue masking tape affixed to the bottoms of their
shoes. Haman’s name was added to the tape
where the recollection of his evildoing could be sufficiently stomped upon. 
As Miss Moyer read a condensed version of the biblical tale, partygoers sat perched on the edge of their green classroom chairs with noisemakers at the ready. Each time Haman’s name was mentioned, feet stomped, shiny streamers trembled with the force of expelled air, and an increasing swell of honking sounds grew until the room sounded convincingly like canned New Year’s Eve. 
This pleasant gathering, celebrating God’s deliverance of his people through the courage of Queen Esther and her cousin Mordecai, culminated with the sipping of white grape juice and the eating of delicious HAMENTASHEN. Hamentashen is just a big word for some little fruit-filled pastries, the reference being Haman’s ears or Haman’s pockets. A nice touch.
If Kelloggs really wanted to inspire smiles at breakfast time, they’d find a way to make Pop-Tarts taste more like hamentashen.
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