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Bride, The Handmaid of the Inn
The storyteller tells a story...
Long ago, when Caesar Augustus decreed that all must be
counted, the little city was crowded with travellers. The land lay
under drought, and the innkeeper went to fetch water from the well
by the gate, leaving his servant Bride with only a small stoup of
water and a bannock of bread. He charged her not to admit anyone
until his return.
As twilight deepened into the star-filled
hush of an Eastern night, a golden planet glowed low on the
horizon. Palms and cypresses rose from the desert sands, and the
domes of the town shimmered pale against the stillness.
Into the courtyard came a gentle old man, staff in hand, leading a
mule upon which sat a woman. His eyes held awe and quiet joy. He
asked for food and shelter, but Bride had only her small portion
to share. With compassion, she guided them instead to the stable
where oxen lay, for the inn was full.
Bride returned to her
post and fell asleep. Yet in her dreams she heard music beyond
earthly measure, as though the morning stars themselves sang
together. A radiant light shone above the stable door, brighter
than dawn or sunset. Trembling, she entered the humble byre and
fell in adoration, for within lay the Blessed Child she had once
glimpsed in a vision of her youth.
Her memory carried her
back to her western island home, where enchanted isles lay on the
horizon and the winds whispered of ancient days. She recalled the
song of the white merle in the quicken tree by the spring, and the
vision of perfect womanhood that had haunted her dreams.
The Child slept peacefully. Bride, bending low, received Him from
His mother’s arms and wrapped Him in her mantle against the chill
of dawn. Then, sprinkling three drops of water upon His head, she
too fell into gentle sleep.
Sources:• Based on an article in “A Guide to Douglas Landmarks in
Scotland” Castles, Abbeys and Battles
• More of the tale can be
found
here>>>
See also:
St Bride - Patron Saint of Clan
Douglas
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