ABOUT A NINE-YEAR OLD INNKEEPER WHO DIDN'T STICK TO THE SCRIPT

We're all familiar with the depiction of the night Jesus Christ was born. We have seen it in Christmas plays and pageants since we were knee high to a grasshopper. We see it in Christmas cards and religious art and nativity displays of all descriptions. Through the years artists have portrayed the nativity scene as they have imagined it. Each of us can readily visualize it -- the straw on which the baby Jesus lay, the rough-hewn wooden beams of the stable, the animals nearby, and the star-studded sky overhead.

In truth, however, no mention is made of that particular nativity scene in the Bible. It is the work of imaginative minds over the years. As long as we are clear on that fact...In reality, it is St. Francis of Assisi who was credited with staging the first nativity scene in the year 1223. According to his biography, St. Francis got permission from Pope Honorious III to set up a manger with hay and two live animals—an ox and an ass—in a cave in the Italian village of Grecio. He then invited the villagers to come gaze upon the scene while he preached about “the babe of Bethlehem.” 

With that as a clarifying introduction of sorts, I want to pass on to readers of Wrights Lane one of the most touching and meaningful stories I have ever heard about a Christmas pageant enacted by some school children, one young lad in particular.

It is a wonderful account of a nine-year-old boy by the name of Wally who played the roll of "Innkeeper."

Wally was in the second grade, though he should have been in the fourth -- but he was slow and had difficulty keeping up. He was big and rather clumsy, too, but he was well liked by the other children in his class, all of whom were smaller than he. But even though they liked him, it would irritate the kids when Wally would want to play ball with them, or to participate in any game where winning was important--and they would usually find a way to keep him out.

Wally would hang around anyway, though--not sulking, just hoping. He nearly always had a smile, and was always anxious to help any of his classmates, regardless of how they treated him. He looked out for the underdog. Sometimes, if the older boys chased the younger ones away, Wally would say, "Can't they stay? They're no bother."

Wally had his heart set on being a shepherd with a flute in the Christmas pageant that year. However, the play director, Miss Lumbard, felt that she needed to give Wally a part with not too many lines to learn, so she told Wally that she was giving him an important role--that of the Innkeeper. She also felt that Wally's size would lend forcefulness to his refusal of a room to Joseph.

A huge crowd gathered that night to see all of the children in their various costumes, with all of the extravagant props. No one on stage or off was more caught up in the magic of that night than Wally Purling. In fact, as he stood in the wings he was so fascinated with the drama that Miss Lumbard had to watch carefully to be sure he didn't wander on-stage before his cue.

But then came the time when Joseph appeared, slowly and tenderly guiding Mary to the door of the inn. Joseph knocked hard on the wooden door set into the painted backdrop. Wally the inn-keeper, swinging the door open, responded at that point just as he had been told--brusquely he said, "What do you want?"

Joseph answered, "We seek lodging." Looking straight ahead, Wally spoke awkwardly but vigorously when he said, "Seek it elsewhere. The Inn is filled."

Joseph responded, "Sir, we have asked in vain. We have traveled far and are very weary." But again, Wally looked properly stern and said, "There is no room in this inn for you."

Now Joseph was pleading. He said, "Please, good innkeeper, this is my wife, Mary. She is heavy with child and needs a place to rest. Surely you must have some small corner for her. She is so tired."

At that point, for the first time the Innkeeper relaxed his stiff stance and looked down at Mary. There was a long pause--long enough to make the audience a bit tense with embarrassment.

The prompter whispered from the wings, "No! Begone!" Stiffly and somewhat automatically, Wally repeated the words: "No! Begone."

Joseph sadly placed his arm around Mary, she laid her head on his shoulder and the two of them started to move away. But Wally the Innkeeper didn't follow the script at that point. He didn't go back inside his Inn. Rather, he stood there in the doorway watching the forlorn couple. His mouth was open, his brow furrowed with concern, and there were tears in his eyes.

And suddenly that Christmas pageant became different from all the others. Wally called out, "Don't go, Joseph! Bring Mary back!" As a big, bright smile creased his face, Wally added, "You can have my room!"

Some people in the audience thought that the pageant had been ruined. But many, many others felt it was the most meaningful and heart-warming of all the Christmas pageants they had ever seen.