The Jewish calendar runs on its own rhythm, and a surprising amount of it is given over to celebrating. Some holidays are loud, some are cozy, and one asks you to build a hut in your backyard. Here are a few of the happiest.
Purim — costumes and noise
On Purim, people dress up in costume, spin noisemakers called groggers, and read the story of Queen Esther, who saved the Jews of Persia. Every time the villain Haman's name comes up, the whole room erupts to drown it out. The day also runs on giving: mishloach manot (משלוח מנות), little baskets of food that friends deliver to one another.
Sukkot — a booth open to the sky
For Sukkot, families build a sukkah (סוכה), a temporary hut with a roof of loose branches you can see the stars through. You eat in it, some sleep in it, and you wave together four plants — palm, myrtle, willow, and citron. Its nickname says it all: z'man simchateinu (זמן שמחתנו), "the season of our joy."
Chanukah — light that grows
Chanukah adds one flame each night for eight nights, so the light in the window grows brighter as the holiday goes on. The candles remember a small jar of oil that outlasted every expectation. Fried foods, spinning dreidels, and songs fill the eight evenings.
Simchat Torah — dancing in circles
On Simchat Torah, the community finishes the year's Torah reading and immediately starts it over from the very beginning. The celebration is physical: people dance with the Torah scrolls, circling the room again and again.
Passover — the seder
Passover opens with the seder (סדר, "order"), a long festive dinner that retells the Exodus from Egypt. There is a script called the Haggadah, four cups of wine, flat matzah bread, and a night full of questions — the youngest at the table asks why this night is different from all others.
A year built for celebrating, one holiday at a time.
Every duck is a doorway like this one.
A little Jewish joy, hidden for a stranger to find. Start a flock, or read the weekly columns.