An annoyance becomes a treasure

For months now, I’ve been trying to figure out what to do with this piece of display furniture which had found its way into my office. It was a cabinet with a glass top that contained a Torah scroll, the handles of which were on the outside of the cabinet and could be used to roll the scroll. It was an odd thing because it was not fit for ritual use, and as often happens, my school office had once again become the dumping ground for Judaic curiosities.

Because it was a Torah scroll, however, I was reluctant to store it anywhere else, and so it has kind of become part of my breezy decor. Last week, I took a closer look at the Hebrew inscription written on the handle.

“A gift from Batsheva Bratt and Rochel Kaufman (her sister) in memory of their brother Dovid Aharon who perished in the Holocaust.”

It had been donated by my grandmother and my aunt, and unbeknownst to anyone it just "happened” to be dumped in my office.

All of the sudden, an annoyance has become an heirloom.