Imagine Mary's birth story

“Well, my water broke while I was at the grocery store.”

“I pushed for 40 hours and they had to do a C-section.”

“My baby was coming so quickly I couldn’t get any drugs, so I had to do it naturally.”

Others boast a different scenario.

“I had my delivery scheduled. I was able to go to the hospital make-up on and with my hair curled so I would look good for the pictures.”
Or my all time favorite, “I only pushed once and out she came!”

Whatever the story, each of these mothers has special and unique circumstances that offer a memorable moment for them.

I have pictures of the birth of our two daughters, and I cherish them very much. Sometimes the details of my stories are a little unclear, but the ending is always the same. I delivered two beautiful baby girls.

Over 2,000 years ago, the most special birth story was told. Have you ever thought about if Mary had written the story of Jesus’ birth?
Mary’s perspective would have been interesting to hear. She seemed like she had such a quiet, gentle spirit, and she probably would have given us a better glimpse of how Jesus was born. We will rely on the Bible to tell us; we will read it and understand it according to our individual interpretation. And, we can only imagine in our hearts and souls what happened that holy night.

We will never know how many centimeters she was dilated when the innkeeper denied them a room. We will never know if her water broke while riding a donkey to the stable. We will never know if Joseph paced or fainted. We will never know if Jesus was breech. We will never know how many pushes it took Mary to deliver Jesus. We will never know if Jesus came out crying.

There is a part of the story that we do know and it must be told. Jesus was born because God wanted the world to know about him, so he sent his only son to live on earth.

Jesus’ birth is celebrated every year. For those of us who know the story, we should tell it with just as much excitement and awe as if we were there. We should tell it with such joy and happiness as if we were there. We should remind people that Jesus was born for me and for you.

Mary was a human who experienced all the joys, pains, and emotions of delivering a child. Jesus lived his life to tell others of our Lord and then gave the ultimate sacrifice - his life.

May you take some quiet time Christmas Day and say a special thank-you prayer for Mary and a prayer of thanksgiving for Jesus. Mary delivered the one who has given us everlasting life, and Jesus has given us the best gift ever.

May your Christmas be a remembrance of Christ’s birth, his life, his death and his purpose.

Merry CHRISTmas.

Tricia Massey is a stay-at-home mom, a member of the Commerce Downtown Development Authority and chair of the Commerce Public Library’s capital campaign.