Dear friends,
I’ve just come from a ministers’ get-together where we all shared some of our favorite holiday stories with each other. It inspired me to share with you all a story I wrote for Christmas Eve, three years ago, inspired by Anatole France’s story “Our Lady’s Juggler” and Tomie dePaola’s “The Clown of God.” Happy holidays to all!
Many blessings,
Rev. Laura
***
Once upon a time, many a long year ago,
there lived a poor juggler named Urvakhsha,
which means “Joyful” in the language of the land where he lived,
the land of Persia, which now we call Iran.
This Urvakhsha was a wonderful juggler.
Every day he would go to the market
and perform for the crowds.
He juggled lovely brass balls that shone in the sun.
He juggled knives that glinted their sharpness
as they flew through the air.
The children stared and stared,
their eyes wide with excitement.
But this was a very difficult way to make a living. Continue reading
