Soon enough it will be December 25th. All day I've been mulling over a fitting entry for the occasion. I came up with the framework for a story that I think will be enlightening to at least one or two people. Since this should be a rather long story I'd like to remind you that all of my written works are Copyright 2004 to Vincent R. Berry.
It had been a long journey for the young couple. For one of them there are saddle sores and pains from riding an ass for many many miles. For the other, the pain and stiffness shoots through his legs like an electrical current. But they had arrived in Bethlehem, and just in time for the census. Just in time.
Walking through the town square, the couple noticed the streets bustled with people. Some had not lived in Bethlehem for years, others have been here all their lives. But it was those that just arrived that created a problem for the couple. You see, Joseph's (that was the male) parents had passed many years ago, and he had not been back to Bethlehem in a very long time. Therefore, they had nowhere to stay. Friends and acquaintances all had their spare rooms occupied by those that arrived earlier than Joseph and Mary, his betrothed. They would have been in town earlier, but you see Mary was with child, so their journey was extended by many days. And considering who their child was going to be, it was a good thing they took it slow and did not damage the unborn child.
Joseph walked at a fevered pace, with Mary not far behind. Still on the donkey, of course, with a rope extending from the ass to Joseph's hand. They arrived at their last resort. The only inn located in Bethlehem. It was owned by a friend of Joseph. The man inherited the inn from his father, who inherited it from his father, and so forth. Joseph knocked, and the innkeeper answered with a rather sour look on his face. He was about to tell the two, on very uncertain terms, to get lost. But, seeing that it was his childhood friend Joseph, he couldn't turn them away. Especially a woman with child.
The innkeeper told Joseph that all the rooms were occupied. Again, they had arrived later than all of the others and were left out. But there was one last hope for the couple. The innkeeper offered to let them stay in his stable free of charge. He knew that it wouldn't be the most pleasant smelling experience for them. But it would keep them warm once the sun went down and the wind began to blow. Also, it was obvious Mary was very close to having her child, and the inn was close to the local midwife.
He informed Joseph of all of this, and told him that when Mary was ready to deliver the child to get his wife, who is one of the midwife's assistants. She would get the midwife and the other assistants to help the birth along. And again, with who their child was going to be, it was important that she had all the help possible.
So, Joseph set Mary down on one of the softer bales of hay in the stable. He unloaded their things from the ass, and prepared to get himself settled. He found the next softest bale of hay, and laid himself down on it. He closed his eyes and drifted to sleep. Unfortunately, this rest was very short. The screams of pain coming from his betrothed were quite enough to stir him from his slumber, as well as the rest of the inhabitants of the stable. Among the braying, neighing, clucking, and moans of pain Joseph stood frozen. Then he remembered: the innkeeper's wife.
What happened next was akin to a relay race. Joseph ran to the inn and alerted the innkeeper, who in turn alerted his wife, who in turn ran across the street and alerted the midwife, who in turn alerted her assistants. Then, they all came racing back to the stable to attend to Mary. Well, all of them except for Joseph. He was feeling very anxious about this whole pregnancy, and would not have been much help to anyone even if he did know what to do in this situation. To him, childbirth was a mystery. So, he did something he knew.
Inside the stable he was able to find a few old tools. He looked at the rusty saw and knew it was nothing like his back home. His glistened in the sunlight, its wood magnificently molded to the blade. This was rusty and in rather bad shape, but it would server its purpose. After a brief search he found some spare lumber. His only question now was what to build.
Finally, he decided on a manger. He noticed that the innkeeper only had one, though he had many animals. Also, that manger wasn't in very good shape. He considered this manger his payment to the innkeeper for his generosity.
As he whittled away at the wood, he tried to think about everything but the birth taking place a few yards away. He was under great stress about this entire ordeal. He knew the child wasn't his, but that wasn't the biggest thing on his mind. The thing he was worried about, as always, was what the others thought. Ever since he was betrothed to Mary he had been getting funny looks from the people of his town. Mary and he weren't married, yet she was pregnant. He could try to explain to them that the child wasn't his, but that would only compound his problems. Add to that the explanation that Mary was impregnated by God and carrying the saviour of the world and everyone would surely think he was crazy.
Joseph thought of divorcing Mary after the birth, but a visit from an angel in a dream stopped that thought. It was never the divine facet of the pregnancy that bothered him. He was a good man, a religious man. He loved God and believed that He would provide for this new family and the soon-to-be born saviour. The problem was that he was a good man, so when people gave him that look of disdain he always felt ashamed, and wrongfully so. Joseph knew in his heart that this was the right thing to do, and he did it, even if it did make him feel uneasy around his friends. Again, he believed God would provide. And so far, He had.
Before he knew it, the manger was finished. It wasn't perfect, but with the tools and the wood he had to work with it was a job well done. He looked over at his betrothed, her face in a grimace of pain. The sun was beginning to set, and the midwife said that it wouldn't be much longer before the child was born. Joseph packed some hay into the manger as he watched Mary giving birth. In between her labor pains she managed a smile, and he returned it.
In a few hours the midwife, who was by now rather exhausted and bedraggled, proudly announced that Mary delivered a very happy, healthy little boy. But of course, Mary and Joseph already knew that. The innkeeper's took some of the inn's spare cloths and rags and wrapped the newborn in them. Then, she looked for a suitable place to put the child down. The midwife and her assistants all looked around for a suitable crib, and immediately all their eyes fixed on one thing: Joseph's manger. They placed the child in it, and very peacefully, it rested.
By this time Mary had also fallen asleep from exhaustion. Joseph, too, decided it was time to rest. And for the first time, the entire family, including its newest member Yeshua Ben-Yosef, slept. It was some time during the middle of the night when Joseph was started awake by a noise. He immediately thought of Mary and Yeshua, and whether or not they were in danger. But the sound he heard was Mary singing the child a song and the child giggling along. Joseph smiled, and realized that he hadn't been out of the stable in a while. He walked outside to get a breath of fresh air. The cool night's breeze hit him and he wrapped his robe tighter around him. As he looked back at the stable he saw his betrothed and their son, the new saviour, peacefully dozing back to sleep. Looking above the roof of the manger, Joseph noticed a star he hadn't previously seen. He was no astrologer, but he was sure that this particular star had just come into existence. But he quickly put that out of his head, for he heard another noise.
This time it wasn't Mary or the child, it was a very faint noise. He could just barely make it out, but it sounded like many different voices gathered together. It seemed the voices formed a choir, and the song seemed familiar. It was the song that Mary had been singing Yeshua to sleep with. With a deep breath and a wide smile he walked back into the stable. And just as he went back to sleep Joseph thought yes, He would provide for us after all.
Merry Christmas,
Vince
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