I mean, really...how in the ever-livin' world could it have been a Silent Night? Let's recap. First off...the young woman who was due any second had to travel miles and miles ON A DONKEY! Ok, some theologians believe she actually traveled in a cart pulled by a DONKEY! So let me get this straight...you think that's any BETTER??? Please at least tell me the roads were freshly graded. Something tells me otherwise. Let's really stop and think about this ladies. Do you remember your 3rd trimester? When your sciatica nerve pain is unbearable and your back/hips feel like a 90 year olds??? I sure wish the Bible gave us more details on what her personality was like. Do you think she was one of "those women" who loved pregnancy and never got sick and say they've never felt better? Or do you think, just possibly, she was just like me...she ached, she got irritable, she had cankles and she just wanted relief. I bet by the time Joseph finally found that barn she could have cared less. She was more than likely in full blown labor and was like, 'just get me off this ass, already!!!!' While many of us would have been whiny and "woe is me-ish", my gut tells me that Mary, although very young, had a quiet strength. I think she really GOT what her PURPOSE was. But still...a SILENT NIGHT? She had no epidural. As far as we know, it was just her and Joseph...and a few stinky animals. I'm thinking about this in my car, chuckling at the words to the song like it couldn't be further from the truth.
Fast forward to tonight. Christmas Eve. I am getting both of my kids ready for bed. Sam goes to bed first and I grab his favorite blankets and cradle all 22 months of him in my arms. We sit in a rocking chair in the corner of his room. The door was open and I could hear his older sister in a blur of activity while her Daddy washed the dishes. Our dog, Harry, came into the room and circled a few times before plopping down at my feet. The washing machine was on spin cycle and the dryer was on. But as I held my little man, his blond hair spiked and his thumb in his mouth, it felt like in all the world, it was only him and I. He looked at me with sleepy blue eyes and the corners of his mouth went up in a sweet smile. In the midst of all the noises, I sat in marvel and awe, just as I'm sure Mary did once she finally held that little baby in her arms.
I am far from a theologian but I am a mommy. I cannot tell you all the facts and theories that surround the details of that night but I think I can relate, as a woman and mother, to how Mary must have felt that night as she cradled Jesus close to her for the first time. Her arms were full as she held the One Who adopts us into His family. What a beautiful picture.
