The father is Russian. He made Aliyah (moved to Israel) some years ago. The boys speak Hebrew, Russian, and English. It was the day before the boy's bar Mitzvah.

     What could I share with the boy that would stay with him, that would give him some understanding of the significance of fulfilling the mitzvah of tefillin?

     I asked him, "What happens to us when we put on tefillin?"        

     I pointed to a part of the English translation of the blessing that he said before he put on the tefillin and told him to read it.

     He read out loud, "…Who has made us holy with His commandments..."

     I asked again, "What happens to us when we do a mitzvah?"

     He said, "It makes us holy."

    "Wow! Tefillin makes us holy! What a wonderful thing! To become holy!"

     He smiled. He liked the idea very much. He saw there is something special about tefillin. And even if he doesn't understand the depth of it yet, or if he forgets that this happens when we put on tefillin, he will be reminded every time he reads the blessing.

     Fulfilling a mitzvah is not just a physical, mechanical act. There is a spiritual side to it that we have to be aware of, too.