The Mezuzah on the Wall

Yes, it is true. I am now the proud owner of a mezuzah. The idea of a mezuzah was taken from Deuteronomy 6:4-9, which talks about the need for the Israelites to always keep God's law on their hearts and their minds. The passage also talks about writing the law on the doorposts to one's house. Thus the idea of a mezuzah was conceived, out of the need to put the law on the doorposts, to be always thinking about it.

Although this is primarily a Jewish tradition, I LOVE tradition, and especially traditions based towards thinking of God. So even though I'm not officially Jewish, I rather like the idea of doing things in the Jewish way. A dear friend of mine, knowing this, gave me one for my birthday.

My birthday was on the 31st of January, which means that sometimes there are packages that arrive for that special occasion. I received a letter from my friend two days ago saying that this package was the second part. So, today after lunch I checked my mailbox to find a precious yellow paper sitting amongst my mail. Excitedly I took it to the counter, where I had to show my ID and sign for a package before I could cradle it safely in my arms. When it was finally snuggled next to my coat, I wanted to squeal with delight at the label. See? The stamp is in Hebrew!

This was the content of the box... and packing peanuts... But I didn't want to take a picture of the packing peanuts. 'Cause who likes packing peanuts? (Well, actually I do, especially because it's been a looooonnng time since I last received a package, or even saw a package, with packing peanuts. I used to play with them in the sink...heh heh. Oh, come on, don't tell me you never did that! At least in the bathtub. Right?)

And the instructions for the blessing before affixing the mezuzah to the wall... complete in Hebrew, transliterated Hebrew, English, and Russian.
Yes, I know. The picture is blurry. You have my cell phone to thank for that. >_> But without the blurriness, the Hebrew side is on the left, and the Russian version is on the right. The transliterated version and the English one are on the back, but I didn't feel like taking a picture of them.

Now, these are the scrolls that are supposed to go inside. I actually could only fit the smaller one in, but I'm glad in a way because now I can look at the other one as often as I want. They both contain the passage from Deuteronomy 6:4-9, but the smaller one is the Hebrew script, and the larger one, the one I plan to hold on to, has the English version, and the transliterated version. The transliteration means that the pronunciations of the Hebrew letters have been printed out in English letters, so they can be read aloud. Very handy for those of us who can't read Hebrew yet. :P

Deuteronomy 6:4-9
Hear, O Israel: the LORD our God, the LORD is one. And you shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your might. And these words, which I command you this day, shall be upon your heart; and you shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise up. And you shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. And you shall write them upon the door-posts of your house, and upon your gates.

Well, there you have it! Traditionally, the mezuzah is affixed to the door frame at a slight angle, but since I'm in a college dorm and don't plan to stay in this particular room past May, I'll hold on to it until I have a home of my own. These pictures, taken on my cell phone, do not really completely grasp the loveliness of my little mezuzah (or not so little... it's as long as the space between my wrist and the tip of my middle finger. But then again, I do have smaller hands). It's a beautiful mezuzah, one that I plan to treasure. Someday, I will teach my children to keep God's word and his commands always on their minds, but until then, I will set to be an example for them someday.