WHERE ARE YOU, JESUS?

Dear Sisters,

I was saying the Rosary on Saturday, and visiting with the Holy Family as I pondered the Joyful Mysteries.  When I got to Finding Jesus in the Temple, the wheels on my imagination started to whirl. 

Imagine ladies the dusty road that the extended family was taking out of Jerusalem.  There are various animals,  some pack animals, some providing milk or food.  There are servants, and Joseph and Mary's families.  Some men are calling to each other, noting an animal that is straying or a rocky area to be avoided.  The women walk together, chattering happily about their time in Jerusalem and the blessings the Lord had provided.

The group is far advanced out of the city when they stop to rest and the women prepare a meal.  Mary glances around idly, looking for her sweet son.  She notes that he isn't in the vicinity, but she's not worried.  He's probably with Joseph.  The boy loves his father and spends a lot of time at his side.  She finds Joseph and offers him the meal that she and the other ladies have prepared.  He smiles warmly at his wife and thanks her for the food.  Then Mary asks, "Where is Jesus?"  Joseph puts down the trencher he was holding and looks at his wife, "I thought he was with you."  He too had noticed the boy's absence, but assumed that he was spending time with his mother and the other children his age.

Joseph's heart starts to pound as he gets up to start actively searching among their brethren for Jesus.  With every passing minute the ball of dread in his stomach is widening, causing a sickening feeling of fear that he can taste in his mouth.  Joseph looks up to heaven, "Lord help me find your son.  I love him so much.  Please keep him safe."

After searching the camp, Mary turns a worried face to Joseph, "What should we do?"  I realized then, that Our Lady must have turned to Joseph always for her needs, for her protection, for her comfort.  His were the strong shoulders she relied upon as she they raised God's son.  We too can go to Joseph when we have that ball of fear in our bellies.  We too can rely on his strong shoulders, his protection when we fear for those we love.  He is a marvelous advocate for those of us that have children who are lost...to the faith.

Joseph must have immediately taken control of the situation.  He sent family members to backtrack and look for the boy.  He made the decision to head back to Jerusalem and look for their son.  He brought Mary along because they were a unit.  Together they raised God's son.  Together they faced hardships in Egypt and peril from Herod.  They were united in their faith and their purpose and there was no question that they would find Jesus together.

Those of us that have the vocation of marriage have another lesson to learn here.  We have a helper at our side that can help us find Our Lord.  We too can turn back to the Temple and find Jesus.  We too can lean upon each other as we journey back to the Father.

The mysteries are so rich in meaning.  I have only scratched their surface.  Like an onion there are many layers of meaning and it is only that I am too sinful yet and too immersed in my own everyday nonsense to reach the inner layers.

Dear Lord,
Help me too detach myself more each day from the mundane and the worldly,
that I may enter to an ever deeper understanding of your great glory and love.

Ever your little broken pencil...