The bus lurched to a stop, nearly throwing the young couple standing at the front into the greenish windshield. The woman, who was not only pregnant but overdue, cried out as she stumbled into the metal handle that worked the doors. The man, off-balance himself, tried to steady her without falling down the corrugated stairs. He shot an angry look at the driver before they dismounted, but the driver only grunted as he swung the doors shut behind them and lurched back into traffic.

It had been a long trip, and they were not used to traveling. So they stood for a minute near the curb, their single battered suitcase in hand, not quite ready to enter the swift currents of people that flooded the sidewalks, not quite sure which direction they should aim for once they did. They had never been to Chicago before, and they wished they weren’t here now.
Joe and Mary Davidson were from Princeton, Iowa. He was a welder, as his father had been. She was an old-fashioned girl, quiet and intelligent. Joe worked at the smallest branch division of a large, multi-million-dollar, nation-wide company, where he was one insignificant name way at the bottom of the organizational chart. In a world divided neatly into workers and bosses, Joe was clearly a worker.
It was Joe’s job with this company that had brought them to Chicago. A new, young Ivy-Leaguer had taken over at the top, and in a show of power thinly disguised as “company spirit,” he had decreed that everyone attend the annual convention. This year it was in Chicago.
Mary’s pregnancy was no excuse for Joe not to attend. Every employee, from CEO to mailroom clerk, was expected to be in Chicago this weekend. Whoever wasn’t could expect to find somewhere else to work come Monday morning. It was that simple. So Joe and Mary found themselves making the journey.
Still standing at the curb, they looked around for a few minutes in frustrated apprehension. Then they smiled weakly at each other, grasped hands, and stepped gingerly into the current, where they were quickly swept away by the tide of humanity.
Somehow they managed to find the hotel that had been booked by the company. Joe looked around in the lobby for anyone he knew or anything that seemed familiar, but, finding no one and nothing, he worked up the courage to face the desk clerk on his own. He waited quietly by the counter for the man to look up from his computer. After a few minutes of being ignored, he shifted his balance and tried to make an unobtrusive noise. The clerk looked up.
“Yes?” he asked, confused by the presence of someone like Joe in his hotel.
Having now got the man’s attention, Joe wasn’t sure what to do with it. “We’re—uh—we—,” he indicated his wife, “—we need someplace to stay,” he stammered.
“Sorry, we’re booked.” The man returned to his work. “Big convention this weekend. No rooms left.”
“Yes, see, that’s why we’re here,” Joe began. “We’re here for the convention.”
“Oh, why didn’t you say so?” sniffed the clerk. “What’s the name?”
Relieved to finally begin feeling as if they belonged, Joe gave the man his name and waited while he looked up their reservation. He grew just a little bit worried as the clerk punched in code after code in an attempt to call up the Davidsons’ records. He wondered if everything was going to be alright.
Artist note on this week’s illustration: “I like the jumbled city because it feels confused like Mary and Joseph do.”
Looking forward to “part 2”
Thanks Julie—I’m looking forward to it as well!
Interesting beginning to the story. The names seem vaguely familiar. And the rest of the story……..? Nice.
Thanks John! I think the Christmas story has become somewhat romanticized. My goal in re-telling it is to remind people of the difficulties and ugliness Joe and Mary—and Jesus—faced. These were real people, and I want their real-ness to come through.
Super fun! I don’t want to wait til next week to read the next part!
Merry Christmas! (It’s December now, so I can say that.)
I agree – Merry Christmas it is!!
I don’t want to wait until next week either. I’m ready to read the entire story. Very good.
Thanks Carolyn! Next Wednesday will be here before you know it. :) (Besides, I have to wait for Sharon Ruane to finish the drawing for Part 2 of the story!)
You’ve got my attention! Ready for part 2 …
Me too! I’ve had fun with this break from my “normal” blog content. Thanks for your encouragement. :)
Very creative Melanie. Thanks for the “commercial” break–it was good to read and I look forward to next week. The illustration is awesome too!.
Real people, real needs, real feelings. The story is captivating, Melanie!
Thank you, Ann. It’s easy to miss out on the emotions when we’re so familiar with the story, so I’m glad it’s coming alive in this way. As an added benefit, I found myself going back to the Bible story, reviewing it closely to clarify for myself what parts of this familiar story are actually in the Bible and what parts have been added by tradition. One example: There’s no innkeeper in the Luke 2 account.
Toni, your praise of Sharon Ruane’s illustration means a lot, coming from a fellow artist. I’m really grateful to Sharon for agreeing to illustrate this series. She does a lot of different kinds of art, using a lot of different mediums—chalk, watercolor, acrylic, oil, and other things I don’t even know the names of. Sharon has told me a little bit about the upcoming illustrations, and I’m eager to see them!
I love the words and images to tell the story. I am looking forward to the rest!
Hi Jeanne, welcome to my blog! I’m glad you found me, and I hope you keep coming back!