Uncle Asa’s story   My nephew’s upper lip disappeared under his lower one in a determined pout. What had gotten into him? Eliezer returned from Migdal Eder with a sullen Tobiah in tow just after sunset. Sighing with satisfaction or possibly relief, Eliezer plopped down next to me by the fire. He stretched out his long legs and leaned back on his elbows. But Tobiah slunk off to the shadows and sat with his arms wrapped around his knees. He looked like a tent with the flap pulled shut. Keeping my tone light as I stirred the stew that simmered over the fire, I welcomed Eliezer back to our flock.…

Joseph’s story   My heart squeezed when I saw Mary sitting on a boulder on the outskirts of town. Her eyes were closed, pinched shut in pain. Her jaw clenched, stifling a moan. My first memory of her flashed through my mind. Giggles filtered through the sycamore leaves overhead.  I looked up to see her legs dangling from a branch as she and my little sister gobbled ripe, juicy figs straight from the tree. My sister jostled her reaching for another fig, and Mary lost her balance. She fell into my arms. I had no idea then that it was only the first time I would hold her. But when…

Eliezer’s Story   Squinting in the late afternoon sun, I wiped my brow and surveyed our work. The crazy intense, sleep deprived spring was well behind us. The last ewe had delivered the last lamb. We’d had a lovely, lazy summer letting the sheep graze the lush hill country. I’d been glad to get away from town for a few months. But harvest had come and gone, and we’d brought the sheep to the fields to eat what the gleaners left behind.  That morning, Uncle Asa sent me to the watchtower on the edge of town to ready it for the next lambing season. Ignoring my aching back and grumbling…

I don’t know about you, but it always bothered me that Jesus was born in a stable among a bunch of smelly animals. No comfy crib for the Son of God – he slept  in a feed trough. Of stone. I can imagine a sheep sticking his head in the manger looking for a snack only to end up nibbling on Jesus’s hair. The usual explanation made sense. The Father chose a humble place for the birth of the Savior to show how he can sympathize with the poor and downtrodden. But that’s not a very satisfying answer. I thought Mary had a legitimate bone to pick with the travel…