Yehonatan and the baby
A short story by Louis Mallett
He was street-child of his day, and Yehonatan’s mother had him up at first light. There would be good pickings in the streets today, the town would be thronged for the census. Yet the boy’s day had been fruitless, with the sun not far from setting.
With bleary eyes he peered through the slit in the stable timber. The four rough-looking men were still gambling and sucking from the grubby, communal wineskin. Another man stood at the stable entrance, frowning impatiently at the gamblers . He was young and wore a close-fitting, seamless tunic that reached to his ankles. The animals in the stable contentedly champed and ruminated. In a clear space of the straw-littered cobbles stood the manger which the inn-apprentice had cleaned earlier, but not yet filled with fresh fodder. Rubbing his drowsy eyes, Yehonatan willed the gamblers to finish and leave so that he could scrounge in the straw for dropped coins.
Suddenly a severe-looking, aproned man, presumably the inn-keeper, confronted the surprised gamblers. He lambasted them and, arms akimbo, watched them slouch out of the low doorway, fearful that the constantly passing soldiers could still be hailed. The inn-keeper did not leave at once, but sat about raking the straw and at the same time rebuking the apprentice, who ad emerged with a stack of hay balanced on his shoulder.
Yehonatan sat with his back to the rough timber, resigned to wait still longer.The haze of evening enveloped the stifling streets and lanes of Bethlehem as the boy roused himself. He had not meant to fall asleep . He yawned mightily, stroked back his tousled black hair. Another great yawn showed how tired he was, yet a strange sound made him fully alert. Its plaintiveness permeated the rough timber and sounded like the crying of a baby.
Startled, the boy peered through the slit. The interior of the stable was not dim any longer, and Yehonatan saw a bearded man with a long crook. His rough-sewn garment was encircled with a leather belt, and its crude hem brushed his sandals. A brown scarf covered his hair, and the ends almost reached his puckered waist. And a young girl was next to the man! She had on a long, saffron-coloured gown, over which was a blue robe that completely draped her slight form. A white scarf of soft damask linen covered her lustrous black hair. It was loosely wound about her neck and the ends streamed down the length of her back.
A slight movement made Yehonatan’s eyes focus on the manger. Then he saw the enveloping cloth and the tiny head. Then he saw the babe!
The man whispered to the beautiful girl, and she gently lifted the baby and clasped the bundle to her breast. Still deeply fascinated, Yehonatan saw the man come nearer and gently pat the tiny head, barely visible in the folds of cloth. A cow emitted a resonant sound of contentment and its glassy eyes transfixed the small and precious bundle held so lovingly by the girl. Carefully she placed the baby in the manger. The man stood aside, his face wondrously lit up with fervent love.
Then there was movement at the entrance and the watching boy saw a number of men jostling to get into the stable. One tall man had a docile sheep draped over his shoulders like a scarf, his strong hands firmly gripping the animal’s hooves.
A big man used a shepherd’s crook to edge a lolling sheep to one side so that he could get closer to the manger. Many pairs of worshipping eyes gazed down at the gurgling baby. The child gaze up and appeared to marvel at the strong, weather-beaten faces. Tiny globules of dribble appeared between the rosy lips of the infant.
As suddenly as they had come, the sturdy shepherds left the stable. The gnarled and wrinkled one insisted on bending his knees before the manger. He told the younger man who helped him up that a mighty force had touched the world and creation was holding its breath.
Yehonatan felt the hand on his shoulder and his startled face looked up at the young man who had been with the gamblers. He felt something being placed in his hand.
The stranger spoke very softly: Give the coins to your mother. Tell her that you saw the babe. Then he was gone into the fast-gathering shadows.
The astonished boy stumbled home on tired legs. No shadows impeded his progress because of the light of a very bright star.
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