NEWS
The Intergalactic
Space Chronicle
A Chanukah Extraterrestrial Miracle
By Sam Lustig
It was meant as a kind gesture, really it was. A giant menorah for the Jewish community of Livingston, made of a strange alloy from a distant planet. The candles, eight in number, were made to last the whole year. A lovely gift from a lovely alien community, who have ancient ties to the Jewish community. Long, long ago they gave them a food replicator when they were struggling in the dry desert. Their Jewish counterparts in turn told them jokes that they did not understand. But a bond had been forged, nevertheless.
Of course, these aliens had no way of knowing the effects of long-term exposure to their generous gift.
The first eight nights passed with no signs of change at all. But before long, something strange began to happen. Random things around the community would light up like very odd lamps. Like David Goodstein's air-bike, Rachel Lustig’s talking dollhouse, and Ruth Cohen’s nano-bot Pokémon figurines. It didn’t take long before every tree, bird, air car, and hover board lit up and exuded the brightest of light.
The town had turned into one big menorah that blinded everyone with brightness. It took another week to realize it was all done by the hand of a few of the children, who had a bit more than an allergic reaction to the aliens’ Chanukah gift. The prolonged exposure to the extraterrestrial’s substances had given them an odd and not extremely useful superpower.
But once the new Menorah heroes got a handle on their superpower, everyone rejoiced at the reduced electric bill all the residents had received. T’was a wonderful Chanukah miracle indeed.
