Picture #2 - The GIFT

It was an ordinary day. I don’t remember anything stand-out-ish about it. I was a stay at home mom, staying at home. Cleaning house, raising kids. I was walking through the dining room, probably with a handful of toys to put back in the play room and I saw my second ‘picture’. It was just a flash, again, just a micro second. I stopped in my tracks and looked back to see if what I had seen was ‘real.’ It wasn’t, but, like all pictures… it was worth a thousand words. There was a setting, an ambience, an emotion, action, and, of course, a message.

It was a birthday party, mine. There were lots of people around, although I never saw any of them. I was busy…hosting, I guess, giving attention to the many guests. I was comfortable emotionally, content, happy, in my element. A moment ago, someone special had quietly given me a gift. Everyone noticed the gift, there was a hushed moment, a reverence, and then everything went on, as per usual. I had smiled and said thank you, you’re so kind…all the usual things, and set the gift aside. I was very honoured to have received this gift. Very grateful. It was pleasantly wrapped with a lovely big bow on the top. The gift on the table was the only thing I actually ‘saw’ in this picture, everything else about it was just ‘understood’. It was just the story surrounding the picture.

You know that you don’t rip a gift open while your guests are still arriving, usually there is a gift table or something, and you open them all together, once everyone is settled. It was not a ‘set aside’, as in, who cares, but rather as in, politeness, waiting for the right moment. The gift giver understood and waited patiently. There were no other gifts, just this one. Everyone was very glad I had been given this gift, I should be so grateful! And I was! Very grateful.

I don’t know how a single picture can have time attached to it, but this one did. There was a ‘before’ and a ‘during’, and an ‘after.’ As time went on it started to feel as if maybe I should open the gift. I could sense that the giver was eager, that he was excited about it, encouraging, but very polite, never one to push, quietly waiting. I stole a glance at it on the table. Instantly, there was tension in the room. It seems everyone had noticed that I was thinking of opening it. Apparently, and I understood it immediately, it was entirely ‘taboo’ to open the gift! It was enough to HAVE the gift. It was an incredibly valuable gift, treated with the utmost respect. Everyone knew what the gift was, including me, but you DID NOT touch it, except to carry it from room to room with you, I should rather say, you did not OPEN it! That would be so rude, so presumptuous. It was such a beautiful gift, so valuable, did I not understand the COST of this gift? How could I possible ask for ‘MORE?’ I was made to feel that, to open, or even to want to open, the gift proved my ingratitude, my disrespect. I was made to feel guilty for even thinking about it. The love in the room was replaced by judgement, and maybe...fear...that I would do something horribly inappropriate.

I could sense the giver grow a little restless, puzzled, anxious, disappointed (?). I could sense him wondering when?…, why? Is she going to open it? He seemed unaware of the other people in the room, only me, unaware of the tension, only the hesitation, but, being ever the gentleman, he said nothing. He waited. I couldn’t look at him. The joy was gone, replaced by confusion, a sense of loss…
That was it. That’s where it ended, except…

A moment later, there was another picture, some ‘time’ after the first. All the people were gone. It was just me, and the gift, ribbon pooled on the table, paper torn, box folded open, and an unknown number (but lots…) of smaller, beautifully wrapped gifts. Each one was tied to the next with a ribbon, so that, as you pulled one out of the box, the next one followed. I hadn’t opened any of the smaller ones yet, but the smile was back, the peace was back, the sense of wonder, awe, anticipation, and now, curiosity. I had thought I had known what was in the box. The gift was called Eternal Life, the giver, Jesus Christ. And inside this gift… so many other gifts!