Mary's Story Read at Lambrick Park's Christmas Eve Service/December 2019 Dried bread, dried berries, and dried meat--again. Travel leaves Joseph and me dry. Oh, how I long for Nazareth, for a bowl of my mother’s lentil stew. A scene from home plays in my mind. Mama hunches over the fire. The green onions, garden vegetables, parsley and thyme sizzle and spark as she adds the olive oil. The scent spreads throughout our small cluster of limestone houses. I close my eyes to keep the picture alive. My sister kneads the dough in a sacred rhythm. Thud, Thud, Thud. Her shoulders brush against Mama’s. They often cook together. Fresh bread. There will be no crumbs left to collect. There never are. Smoke billows out of the fire’s embers and the women disappear from my imagination. Suddenly, home feels like a bedtime story. Distant. Here’s the reality. We camp near a water-well in Samaria, a land I know little about. Our fellow travelers fear a fight but, seven days into the journey, I worry only about my baby. Rome’s census forces us here. We must return to Joseph’s home Bethlehem to be counted. It’s risky to travel nine-months pregnant. I’m afraid we won’t make it. Caesar wants a few extra coins. I want my mother and family. I want my midwife--the one prepared to birth my child. But Rome wins again. Holy God, keep your promise. Save us. It’s dark here. I can’t see the stars through the gnarled olive-tree branches. Joseph lies beside me. I wonder what’s on his mind? Robbers? His family? Our future? The list is long. “Mary” he whispers, “Remind me who this child will be. Remind me how we know.” It’s important to remember. “Who is this child? He is Israel’s King and the son of the Most High God. He is Immanuel, which means ‘God with us.’ He will be great, sit on David’s throne and reign forever. His Kingdom will never end. We shall name him Jesus. Yeshua--the one who saves, for he will lift up the humble, fill the hungry with good things, and chase evil away. How do we know? To be honest, I don’t always but God meets us again and again. First with an angel. A surprise appearance. His message shook me but as I listened, I began to believe. God’s son would be formed inside my womb. I didn’t understand how or why. How the Holy Spirit would overshadow me or why God chose me, Mary, an unwed woman from a hidden village. Still I answered “Yes.” Every time I look down and can’t see my toes, I hear the angel’s voice, “No word from God will ever fail.” The days I start to doubt, cousin Elizabeth’s joy finds me. I hurried to her after the angel’s visit. A miracle baby grew within her too. She’d experienced loss after loss but now in her old age would birth a child. I’m thankful the angel named her--pointed me in her direction--because she calmed all my early fears. What if I lose my community? What if they don’t believe my story? Will Joseph divorce me? Or worse... And then I hear her voice shouting, laughing. Her arm reaching, embracing. She celebrated before I even said ‘Hello.’ Joseph, I’ll never forget it. She knew I was the mother of her Lord! Her face lit with light and my troubled thoughts became a song of praise, “Glory to God, the one who remembers us, guides us, and saves us.” God keeps his promises. I pause the story and turn to Joseph. His eyelids sag and his breathing slows. Maybe, we should sleep. If only I could find a comfortable position. Tomorrow’s mountains loom in the distance and I know the road ahead is worse than the one behind. The donkey stomps and brays. Riding his back gives my purple pomegranate feet a rest but his uneven march shoots lightning through my belly. I wish I was home. Ouch! That was quite a kick little one. A reminder. I may be far from Nazareth but you, my child, are home in me. And, as your mother, I pray that you never ride a donkey again. Israel’s King deserves better. Copyright Chavon Barry 2019
14 Comments
Grant
12/1/2020 12:39:37 pm
I love how you've put us "right there" on the trail with the holy family.
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12/2/2020 06:30:07 am
Thank you Grant. It’s so wonderful to be read and to know that you enjoyed reading it. This is where the research I did creatively led. I continue to ask the same questions as you. There is so much to ponder in this story.
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12/9/2020 09:35:12 am
WOW that was awesome to read from Mary's perspective. I felt like I was in the story and could smell the bread baking and the herbs in the olive oil sizzling. I love how God gave you this!! Look forward to the next one.
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Yvonne Morgan
12/9/2020 12:15:54 pm
This is the second post about Mary this week and my blog includes Mary too. I guess God wants to see her example of faith. We can learn so much from Mary. Thanks for sharing
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12/10/2020 07:21:59 pm
Such a beautiful post! Thank you so much for sharing! It's wonderful! God bless you always!
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12/12/2020 07:10:37 am
I love how you wrote from Mary's perspective! I'm currently going through Eugene Peterson's book Mary: Seeing God through the Eyes of a Mother and it does some similar things. I love when God leads me to similar ideas to help me see him in greater detail. Thank so much for writing!
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12/14/2020 09:44:51 am
What a beautiful and original piece of writing. I love that you imagined the experience for Mary and Joseph - and helped us, the readers, to want to imagine what they went through too.
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Chavon BarryChavon is a new writer from Victoria, British Columbia. She wrestles with simple answers and is learning to listen, to be still with God. Archives
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