Rosemary's Gift
Andy Smith

 

Most people know the story about the three wise men who journeyed from afar to bring the baby Jesus gifts when he was born in Bethlehem, but only a few have heard the story about a little girl they met along the way.

After traveling for many days, the three wise men knew that they were getting close to where the baby would be found. They were tired and wanted to find a place to rest for the evening before they made their final journey into Bethlehem. They were far from any towns, so they thought they would have to put up their tents in the open desert, when suddenly they saw a small light shining in the distance. They went towards the light and found that it was a small cottage. Inside, they found a widow and her little daughter named Rosemary.

Rosemary and her mother lived a quiet life and were not use to people dropping in at their small home far removed from the rest of the world. Rosemary's father had died when she was a baby, so her mother was the only person she had known through her early years. Her mother was a very religious woman who spent every evening telling Rosemary all the many wonderful stories about God that she had learned when she was a child.

With no other children around to play with, Rosemary spent most of her days helping her mother with the daily chores and playing with her simple toy figures made of small sticks and thread. Being that she knew no other life, Rosemary was a happy child who seemed quite content with the world she was living in.

When the three wise men told them about their journey, Rosemary's mother was more than happy to take them in for the evening. She too had heard about a special baby being born in Bethlehem and was hopeful that this truly might be the Messiah that they were looking for.

As the wise men settled in for the evening, one of them seemed to take a special interest in little Rosemary. His name was Saul and he was a very wealthy and powerful man. He loved children and seemed very comfortable spending his free time playing with Rosemary. Not use to having visitors around to talk to, Rosemary, of course, was very anxious to find out all that Saul knew about life outside of her humble cottage. She wanted to hear about the places that he had been and all the stories that he had to offer her. But she especially wanted to hear more about this special baby they were looking for. Saul was more than happy to accommodate Rosemary as he held her in his lap to tell her the story.

"We had very reliable people tell us about this special baby that was to be born. A baby unlike any other baby. A baby so special that all the kings of all the lands would have no power over him. A baby of such power that even the greatest armies of the world would have no rule over him. These sources told us that we would find the child if we followed the bright shining star in the sky, so we have been watching the sky as we travel and the bright star has brought us this far. We are very excited, because we know that in just a few more hours, we will find this baby."

"But what will you do when you find this baby?" asked the inquiring young Rosemary.

"Oh, my, young lady, we have brought some wonderful gifts to give the child." said the wise man with great enthusiasm.

"But why do you give him gifts?" asked Rosemary. Living alone, she did not have any experience in sharing gifts with others.

"Oh, my little Rosemary," Saul smiled, "A man's wealth means nothing if he cannot share it with others. When someone touches your heart with love and kindness, it's good to give them some thing special to show how much they mean to you."

Rosemary was still confused. "But you don't even know this baby. How can he be so special to you when you have never met him before?"

Saul holds her close and tries to explain.

"There are many things that we do not understand, but we still believe to be true. We have been watching the stars at night and listening to all they say. They tell us of great miracles and wonderful changes in the people who will meet this child. Yes, we have never met him, but we have listened to the stars enough to understand that this is a baby we will want to know. We are excited about being one of the first ones to greet him. We are anxious to bring him gifts and let him know that we want to be his friend."

Rosemary thinks about what Saul has said, but still a bit confused, asks, "Can only wealthy people go see him?"

Saul laughs out loud as he hugs her. "No, no, my child. That's what's so good about this baby. If he is the baby that we think he is, even the poorest of the poor will be able to see him. He has come to bring hope to all people, not just the wealthy."

At that, Rosemary seems to accept the idea. Her mother interrupts them by telling her it is time to go to sleep. Reluctantly, Rosemary says good night to the three wise men and heads off to her bed in the other room.

The next morning found the three wise men up early and eager to get started on the final leg of their journey. Rosemary was a bit subdued. She really enjoyed their company and wished that they could stay longer. Or, better yet, she wished that she could go with them so that she could also meet this special baby.

When Saul was ready to leave, Rosemary ran to him and gave him a big hug. Then she showed him one of her stick figures that she had made.

"This is one of the people that I play with. Do you think that the baby would like to have it as a gift from me?" she asked Saul.

Saul gave her a big hug. He knew that this was the first gift that she had ever given anyone. He also knew that the little figures made of sticks were very important to Rosemary and that giving one to the baby was a big sacrifice for her.

"I'm sure that this will be the greatest gift the baby receives." he said with a big smile. With a final goodbye, the three headed out in their search to find the baby.

Time went by and Rosemary became a grown woman. Her life, however, remained pretty much the same. She and her mother lived a quiet life in their small cottage out of touch with the rest of the world. It had become a rough life for Rosemary, as her mother, who had become quite old, was unable to do many of the chores. Though they lived in isolation, they had heard many wonderful stories about a man named Jesus from those occasional travelers who would pass through.

As her mother's health became worse, Rosemary didn't know what to do. She felt that if she could get to this man named Jesus, he could help her mother get well again. So, she decided to leave her mother while she was still healthy enough to be left alone, and try to find the man everyone had been speaking about.

She asked people she came to where she could find Jesus, and after a few days, finally caught up with the man they were calling 'Master'.

At first, she thought she would just stay close and see if this man was truly as good as everyone was saying. What she saw was a gentleman full of compassion and love reaching out to all those who were in need. A man who spoke with more hope and wisdom than she had ever heard before. She knew that with only a few words, he could make her mother well again.

The next day, she decided to approach Jesus as he went off by himself.

"Master," she said nervously, "I was hoping that you could say a few words for my mother who is at home very ill. We live too far away for you to go see her, but I thought if you just said a few words, she might be well again."

Jesus looked at her with his loving eyes and began to speak to her when he noticed the little stick figure that hung around her neck. He seemed a bit shaken by it and stopped speaking.

"Woman, where did you get that?" he asked of the figure.

Rosemary looked down at the figure and then to Jesus, a bit confused.

"When I was a little girl, I would make these figures to play with. My mother and I were very poor. I wear one to remind me of a man I met back then."

Jesus smiled at her as if to know something that she didn't.

"Do you remember who this man was?" he asked her.

"No, master. He was with two other men. They stopped at my mother�s home to rest. They were looking for a very special baby that was born in the area." she replied.

Jesus seemed more certain as he continued, "Did they ever find this special baby?"

Rosemary looked at Jesus somewhat confused. She wanted him to help her mother, but he seemed more interested in her old stick figure.

"We never saw them again after they left." she said, "But, they were very wise men and I'm sure they found the baby."

Jesus smiled as he reached for his chest and pulled out a small stick figure from around his neck that looked very much like hers. Rosemary looked at the figure in disbelief. She knew that it was the figure that she had given to Saul those many years before.

Jesus took Rosemary's hand, as she seemed very frightened.

"My mother told me of the three wise men who had come to greet me when I was born. She told me how they brought great gifts of wealth, but that one of them had brought this small figure from a little girl who lived alone with her mother far away. My mother told me to remember that gift as I grow old as it was the greatest gift of them all, for it had come from the heart of a child. So, I wear it close to my heart to always remind me that love shared should never be measured by wealth."

Rosemary fell to her knees with tears of disbelief. Jesus knelt beside her and put his arm around her.

"You are that special little girl, aren't you?"

Rosemary nodded as Jesus held her head and looked into her eyes.

"Go, and be with your mother, for soon she must go to my Father's house. When she does, I want you to make more of these and go out and give them to every child you meet. Tell them that the greatest gift is love that is shared by a child. Know that my Father will be with you always and will bless every child who holds this figure close to their heart as I do."

Jesus helped Rosemary to her feet and gave her a big hug, then sent her on her way.

It wasn't long after she returned that her mother passed away quietly in her sleep. It was then that Rosemary followed what Jesus had told her. She made many of her little stick figures and left her home to find children to give them to.

And so it was. Rosemary spent the rest of her life going from village to village talking to the children about Jesus and how important it was for them to learn how to share with one another.

Rosemary never saw Jesus again. As she grew old, she continued to go to villages to talk to children. And as she told them about the birth of Jesus, she would say that, of all the fine gifts he had received, it was the simple little stick figure, given to him by that poor little girl, that he wore close to his heart even when he was a grown man.

 

 

Copyright © 2000 Andy Smith
Published on the World Wide Web by "www.storymania.com"