One
year my daughter, Rachel, came up with the idea of making a mural for
the Maggid (Telling) section of the seder. We bought 15 feet of craft
paper and she designed the basic structure of the mural in seven scenes
(slavery in Egypt, the Burning Bush, Moses and Aaron confronting Pharaoh,
the Ten Plagues, the Exodus, the Parting of the Reed Sea, Revelation
at Mount Sinai and into the Wilderness). Rachel sketched it out on the
craft paper, and together we painted in the background in pale blue
(sky and water) and light brown (sand and earth). The Nile River ran
through much of it, and the water symbolism was continued via the Reed
Sea and, at the very end, Miriam's Well. We added a few salient features
(the outlines of a pyramid, the burning bush, the tablets) and then
we hung the mural on the wall. We held our seder in our basement in
the kids' playroom that year, to facilitate the project. When we came
to the Maggid section of the seder, we invited everyone to join in telling
the story through drawings. We provided markers, paper, glue, and stickers
(helpful for the Ten Plagues). At first, the adults were hesitant to
participate, thinking it a "kid project," but with gentle encouragement,
everyone was soon having a great time. The results are here for you
to enjoy. The mural remained on the wall until Memorial Day, and it
is now carefully rolled up and stored away, a precious souvenir of a
seder with wonderful friends. Here are some photos of the action: |
