Page 3 - Binder1

The Light of the World: Hope

The old woman leant forward and put her hands out towards the fire. Then she
took a piece of dried fruit from the bag at her side and drew her shoulders in
towards the heat; and she began…

‘This is how it was….
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The summer had been long and very hot. The land had been dry for months.
T h u m m e a e n n n d e y h o t h e l n d a e n d r o r m o n h .
Pastures were yellow and thin, and dust coated everything. There was such a
rhythm of ordinariness to our lives at that time only broken by our religious
observances. Soldiers made it difficult to do anything else, hope for the future
was at its lowest.
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That day began as very commonplace with the usual chores needing to be
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completed. I left home with my water jar to meet my closest friend, Mary, on the
way to the well, an everyday task. We had our faces covered that morning due
to the dust on the road, but even so I somehow sensed a change in her,
something had happened, and little did I realise then that what had taken place
would radically change our lives forever.’
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As she spoke the old woman leaned into an easy squat and her eyes began to
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shine. Others sat nearby waiting to hear again the well-loved story, which had
been told many times before; by her and by others, but she knew the shape
and grain of it and where to stay true.

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‘As we sat at the roadside a radiance surrounded Mary as she talked of angels,

‘ s w e s t a h e r a s d e a r d i n e s r o n e d a y a h a k d f n e s
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babies, the Son of God and being the chosen one! Friends had gathered and
looking at one another we pondered. Could it be true? Could this have
happened? Could Mary really have seen and heard an angel? Could she really
be pregnant? But Joseph – Joseph, surely not!! She kept saying ‘the spirit of
the Lord is upon me’ and we were perplexed. We needed to see cousin
Elizabeth, the angels’ story needed confirming. Water jars abandoned we set
off.’
As she remembered she paused; we waited, bodily chilled, but with hearts
burning within us as she recalled the words between Elizabeth and Mary...
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‘Their greeting was tender but faltering. Watching and listening to their
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exchange from a distance we were overcome with emotion and wept as the
cousins embraced and rejoiced together. We were moved beyond anything we
had ever felt and in our hearts, we knew that Mary’s account was true. The
Saviour of the world was coming’
Monday, 29th November
Davina from Swanage