Small plumes of dust preceded the small child as he toddled to his mother. His little stubby feet pounding the ground gently in awkward steps. Twin brown eyes grew wide as they focused on his mother's face while his stumbling steps sped up in anticipation.
The mother looked down as the small child ran to her, lifting his arms in want of her embrace. She stooped down and gathered the child into her arms and cooed softly to him. This child was a precious gift given to her by God, but this mother wondered if she could raise this child in the way he needed to be raised. She lifted the squirming bundle up before her face and looked into his innocent eyes.
"What am I to do with you, little one?" She whispered as the child smiled at her, "Will I be a good mother to you or will I not?"
She sat down in the dusty grass and set the child upon her lap. She thought deeply of this while her young boy made grabs at her nose. Suddenly, the child squealed in delight and leapt out of the mother's lap. He tottered across the ground into the arms of a man. The man was dressed in white cloth and shone like the sun at high noon. His face radiated not only light, but also joy and peace.
"Mary, God does not make mistakes." The man began with a slight smile, "He chose you because he knew you were the only one who could raise His Son to be who He is destined to be. The Child is the Son of God, and He is the son of man. You raise your son and God will raise His Son. He has come to be both and to be all. This Child will rid the world of hopelessness and bring light to every soul who accepts Him. God chose you to be His mother because you loved God with such love that He knew you would love His Son just as much."
The angel set the little child down and walked away. His robes seemed to fade away, and soon the whole of him was gone. Mary, mother of Jesus, wrapped her arms about the small Child and gave Him a big smile. The Child's laughter was all she heard.
William Cromwell is a junior at Dayton Christian High School.