THREE TOWN KIDS
[I like to write a story for our Family Mass - which has lots of little ones present. I'm not sure if this story 'worked' for our tiny town or out of town kids on this feast of the Epiphany.]
Once upon a time there were three kids – who happened to be there in Bethlehem when Jesus was born – because they were town kids. They were neither shepherds not kings’ kids – but they saw the kings and the shepherds when they came to see the new born baby Jesus.
The first two kids were two sisters – aged 9 and 11. They woke up many times the night that Jesus was born – because there was a lot of motion and commotion happening just outside their window. They looked out that window several times that night – because there were so many different voices outside in the dark and in the cold. Their mom and dad owned the Inn that had no room for Mary and Joseph. But that night, there were no rooms for lots of people who had come to Bethlehem for the census. And that night was a cold, clear starry, starry night.
Years later, many years later, after Jesus had grown up, preached, healed, and then was arrested and killed and then for those who believe rose from the dead, these two sisters often said, “Imagine if our parents had let Mary and Joseph have a room in our Inn that night? We would be forever remembered for being in the house in which the Messiah was born.”
But that didn’t happen and that’s getting way ahead of the story.
Back to that night – the night Jesus was born…. The two sisters didn’t get dressed when they looked out their window and saw Mary and Joseph – but they quickly got dressed a couple of hours later when they saw shepherds coming into town. It was strange seeing them. Something seemed different. Something new was happening.
The shepherds’ faces were filled with filled with wonder – filled with light – filled with smiles.
The two kids asked the shepherds from their window, “What’s going on? What’s happening?”
And one of them, a young teen age shepherd, said, “As we were out in the fields tonight, guarding our sheep from wolves, we heard a voice, a messenger, an angel from heaven, appearing to us in bright light. We were terrified. And the voice said, ‘Don’t be afraid. Listen, I bring you good news of great joy – to be shared with everyone. Today in the town of David, a savior has been born.’”
The two sisters went outside without waking their parents. They went to a cousin’s house and threw a rock at her wooden window – in hopes of waking up their best friend. These three did everything together. They knew she would love the action. They knew she would want to come and see this new born baby – born in a stable – who was bringing all these shepherds into town.
The three girls silently headed for the cave - the stable where Jesus was born. They watched the shepherds – watching their eyes and their amazement – especially when they saw the baby was lying in a manger – a small wooden box from which the animals ate.
The first two kids were two sisters – aged 9 and 11. They woke up many times the night that Jesus was born – because there was a lot of motion and commotion happening just outside their window. They looked out that window several times that night – because there were so many different voices outside in the dark and in the cold. Their mom and dad owned the Inn that had no room for Mary and Joseph. But that night, there were no rooms for lots of people who had come to Bethlehem for the census. And that night was a cold, clear starry, starry night.
Years later, many years later, after Jesus had grown up, preached, healed, and then was arrested and killed and then for those who believe rose from the dead, these two sisters often said, “Imagine if our parents had let Mary and Joseph have a room in our Inn that night? We would be forever remembered for being in the house in which the Messiah was born.”
But that didn’t happen and that’s getting way ahead of the story.
Back to that night – the night Jesus was born…. The two sisters didn’t get dressed when they looked out their window and saw Mary and Joseph – but they quickly got dressed a couple of hours later when they saw shepherds coming into town. It was strange seeing them. Something seemed different. Something new was happening.
The shepherds’ faces were filled with filled with wonder – filled with light – filled with smiles.
The two kids asked the shepherds from their window, “What’s going on? What’s happening?”
And one of them, a young teen age shepherd, said, “As we were out in the fields tonight, guarding our sheep from wolves, we heard a voice, a messenger, an angel from heaven, appearing to us in bright light. We were terrified. And the voice said, ‘Don’t be afraid. Listen, I bring you good news of great joy – to be shared with everyone. Today in the town of David, a savior has been born.’”
The two sisters went outside without waking their parents. They went to a cousin’s house and threw a rock at her wooden window – in hopes of waking up their best friend. These three did everything together. They knew she would love the action. They knew she would want to come and see this new born baby – born in a stable – who was bringing all these shepherds into town.
The three girls silently headed for the cave - the stable where Jesus was born. They watched the shepherds – watching their eyes and their amazement – especially when they saw the baby was lying in a manger – a small wooden box from which the animals ate.
The three girls watched everything – especially the shepherds watching Jesus. The shepherds – not being townspeople – not being around that often – were interesting to watch. These poor shepherds – uneducated – unknown – whose names were never written down – would be the first to see Jesus.
Why did God make them the first?
The three sisters hadn’t heard something this baby would say years later, “The last shall be first!”
Something new was happening here – and these three girls were the second to see the scene.
These three sisters hadn’t heard something this baby would say years later, “Let the children come to me. These know all about the Kingdom of God.”
Some days later three magi or wise men or kings arrived looking for this same baby. They said they had been traveling for the longest time – following a star – that was leading them to this spot.
When they came into town, they saw these three girls – the Inseparables – playing outside the Inn. They asked these three town kids if they knew where the new born baby was born.
The three said, “Yes, you three have asked the right three. Come and see.”
And these three town kids brought these three strangers to see the new born baby, Jesus.
Once more the three girls watched – this time, three kings, three wise men, as they went to Mary and Joseph and asked to see and hold the baby.
And each of these three kings or wise men or whoever they were, also brought a gift for the new born baby – whom they were calling, “The New Born King.”
The three girls thought the three gifts rather odd – well, maybe not the gold, but incense and myrrh, what are they going to do with these gifts?
The three girls were talking, talking, talking to each other about, “Who is this baby? Why is he so special.”
Then they began to hear rumors and rumbles that King Herod in Jerusalem didn’t like what he was hearing – that a new born king was born somewhere near Jerusalem – and Bethlehem was just a few miles away.
They knew their tiny town was famous because a long, long, long time ago a shepherd boy from that town became the famous King David.
“Wow,” one of the three girls said, “I bet you that’s why Jesus was born here in our little town of Bethlehem.”
They would go to see Mary and Joseph every day – and a few times every day – and that’s how they overheard Joseph telling Mary, “I had this strange dream. We have to go to Egypt – because Herod is going to come and kill every new born baby boy around here. He’s known to do these things. He even killed some of his own sons.”
The three girls said, “Thank God, we were born girls and not boys.”
Then the first of the girls said – the one who always spoke up first, “We have to bring a gift to the baby – but what kind of a gift?”
The second girl said, “Well, it has to be light and easy to carry. But what?”
The third girl said, the one who always spoke last said, “Well, let’s get gifts for their journey. Why don’t we give them something to eat and something to drink? Mom and dad have plenty of food in the Inn. I’ll get a jug of wine. You get some bread – after all Bethlehem means, ‘House of Bread.’ But what about the third gift?”
Silence.
“Then the third girl, who always spoke last, said, “I know. I’ll get a lantern. Besides food, they are going to need light for the journey.”
And that’s what they did – and years later, many years later, when they heard that Jesus often talked about his followers being light to our world – light for the journey, they felt part of the story – especially when Jesus used bread and wine as food for the journey – when at his last supper he took bread and he took wine and said, “This is my body. This is my blood.”
But that’s getting ahead of the story….
So there’s more to come … more stories for other days....
[Painting on top: "The Adoration of the Magi," Sano de Pietro (Ansano di Pietro di Mencio), Italian, 1406-1481, painting ca. 1470 - The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York City, NY]
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