In the Darkness of a Stable

As I sit at my computer on Christmas Eve, enjoying a cup of coffee and listening to the wind blow through the trees, I think of people who are waking up to pain and grief this morning, maybe because of yesterday’s tornadoes, maybe because of illness or death and I wonder how we can have peace and joy. Then, I read the quiet, comforting words of St. Luke, “And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger; because there was no room for them in the inn.” Like the glow of a single candle shining through the darkness of night, hope comes in spite of everything. Joy and gladness fill my heart. I wonder about that first Christmas. I wonder about Mary and Joseph and Jesus and in my imagination, I am there, in that stable and I wonder if it could have been this way:

The stable was dark that night except for the soft glow of the oil lamp Mary had tucked in among their belongings and except for the strange, golden reflection of an unusual light that seemed to come from the sky itself. Mary had never seen anything like it. She wasn’t frightened, however, not by that unearthly illumination, not by being away from her family and the comfortable, familiar furnishings of her home. Instead of fear, she felt a deep contentment and a bubbling sort of joy.

Her baby was so beautiful! His dark eyes watched her as if she and he shared a secret–just the two of them. His incredibly perfect, small, pink fists peeped out of the soft cloths in which she had wrapped Him. She smoothed a black tendril of hair from his forehead. Did He smile?

Glancing at Joseph who knelt beside her Son, Mary saw that he gazed at the Baby in as much amazement as she felt. Dear, strong Joseph. He would always take care of them.

Even the cattle and sheep gazed quietly at her small Son, their breaths warming the brisk air. It seemed to Mary that the whole universe stopped and held its breath. Wonderment wrapped them all. No words could express the bond between Heaven and earth that night. Mary did not fully understand but she fully believed God. Her baby was God’s Son, His gift and because of Him, a hurting world would have hope and joy and love. A dark stable was the birthplace of the Light of the world.