Unseen Characters

When we look at those nativity scenes which are now all around us, we see all the expected characters.  Mary, Joseph, Jesus, angels, shepherds, and even the men from the East who surely did not arrive at the same time as the men who watched their flocks by night.  One of the more popular songs of the season tells us there was a little drummer boy present, but no one has put him in any manger scenes that I have seen.  There were other unseen characters who were more likely there with the nativity couple than the little drummer boy.  Maybe there was a stable boy who tended the livestock in the manger.  And, it should be no surprise for a midwife to be present to help young Mary with a frightening moment in her life.

 

Our stories are full of people who have important parts in our lives, but who remain unseen.  During these days I have found myself remembering some of them who have with the passing of the years become largely invisible.  When I was twelve Bernie introduced me to the passion of my teenage years, amateur radio.  I remember, too, my friend Larry who took a boy from the city and gave him his first hunting lessons.  There is a fifth grade teacher who taught me my first music lessons and a literature teacher who encouraged me to write essays and join the debate team.  One of my father's brother-in-laws took me and this three sons fishing on the Altamaha River.  To remember a few is to have to put the reins on my mind as there are so many who stood alongside of me, only to disappear in the pages of the story.

As we remember the greatest story ever told and look for the unseen characters, maybe it could be a time for looking at our own stories and remembering some of the people who touched us, but mostly remain unseen in the shadows.  Most likely your story is like mine in that the One who has made the most difference is the One who was born in Bethlehem  and who died on Calvary.  Even as my memory tells me my life was made different by the unseen characters in my own story, there is simply no way to remember the story that belongs to me without remembering Jesus.