Joseph's life changes completely the day he sees Maria for the first time. He is working in his workshop, and she walks by with other girls, while they are going with their jugs to the well to get fresh water. The girls are chatting and laughing light-heartedly and he can't help interrupting what he is doing and watching them. He can't imagine that among them there is the one who will change his life. He immediately lays his eyes on her, the most beautiful, the most charming, the most elegant girl he has ever seen. But this is the same for every man who falls in love, isn’t it? And every man who falls in love thinks he is the luckiest, the happiest man in the world.
Silvia and Mark, who were sitting on the sofa, exchanged a glance and a smile and Mark took his wife's hand in a tender gesture.
What will be completely different from every other man in the world is God’s design on Joseph and the fact that all his plans will be completely upset even if he will never regret his choices and his decisions. When he approaches her for the first time he feels clumsy and shy. She smiles pleasantly. She has a light in her eyes, a tenderness in her gaze, a sense of warmth in her way of talking and laughing. He immediately understands that she is conquering his heart completely.
He doesn't know what to tell her, and he simply says:
"Hello, can I help you carry your jug?"
She turns to look at him, and he realizes in that moment that she is the one with whom he wants to live, the one and only he wants to find at home every day after a working day, the one he wants to share his thoughts, his joys and his worries with, the one he wants to take care of for the rest of his life, the one he wants to protect and shield from sorrow and pain.
Giulia intervened:
“How can he know that she is the right one if he hasn't talked to her yet?”
Mario commented musingly: “Giulia, they are not two normal people, they are Maria and Joseph, the holy family…”
Anna nodded and said:
“Yes, Giulia. God was guiding them because he had chosen them to become His son’s father and mother. But when a man falls in love with a woman, he feels that that girl is the right one. Love is something precious and amazing and makes two people feel affection even before getting to know each other better.”
“Did you feel this way with grandpa?”
Anna caressed Giulia's cheek tenderly and sighed at the remembrance of her dear husband:
“Yes, I felt that he was the right person for me, the man who could make me happy… And I was always happy with your grandfather.”
The children fell silent and waited for the story to go on.
Maria simply answers:
"Thank you. I am a little tired today."
So Joseph takes her jug, and he walks next to her the short distance to her home. From that moment they gradually learn to know each other, and, little by little, they start to make plans for their future, to talk about their life together, to dream of their family... Everything is going well, their families are delighted with their union. They are learning to understand each other's feelings, emotions, and to read each other's eyes.
But one day Joseph sees her agitated and upset. He immediately senses there is something different, something new that upsets her but, at the same time, makes her look different, and, he fears, more distant from him.
For some days she keeps avoiding Joseph, and, when they meet, she is kind as usual but she quickly turns her eyes away from him as if she has a secret she can't tell him about. Joseph is tormented, fearing she has changed her mind about their future life together, willing to talk to her and at the same time afraid of her possible answer.
A few days seem like an eternity to Joseph's troubled soul, but then, one day, he makes up his mind, and he decides to talk to her. She is sitting on a bench outside her home, where they so often enjoy sitting together. He approaches her, and, when she looks at him with her sweet eyes, he feels that, whatever secret or problem she is hiding from him, they will certainly be able to face it together. She knows she can't hide her secret any longer and cautiously she tells Joseph everything that happened to her a few days before.
She tells him that an angel appeared and told her that she is going to have a baby, even if she has not married Joseph yet, that the baby is not Joseph’s son, that he is God’s son, destined to save the world from sin. Joseph listens as if what she is telling him is simply a dream, then, little by little, he realizes that what is happening to him is far from his plans for his future with his sweet Maria. He has no doubt of her honesty, but he also thinks of what the people in the village will say of the fact that Maria has a baby before getting married.
It is incredible but we often care more about the way people think of us than what really matters. What should he do? What would be best for her and for him? And their future together? Will he really be able to leave her and go on with his life without the only person he has ever considered sharing his existence with? All these questions are haunting Joseph, together with her pleading eyes that seem to say: "Please trust me, don't leave me, stand by me in this difficult moment!"
He leaves her that evening feeling baffled and heartbroken, he goes home and lays down to sleep, but he can't find rest.
Then... A vision, a sudden warmth as if someone had put a hand on his shoulder to encourage him and a voice that is telling him not to be afraid, to follow his heart and his love for Maria, to trust the Good Lord's project for them, which is more important than they can at that time perceive, to trust His unfailing and amazing Grace and Providence.
Mario asked: “Is it Angel Gabriel, granny? Does Angel Gabriel go to Joseph?”
Anna answered: “The Gospel says that it was ‘an Angel of the Lord', but, since Gabriel was entrusted to protect Joseph and Maria, we can think that God sent him…”
When Joseph gets up the following day, he feels confident, reassured, completely trusting God's will. He immediately goes to Maria to tell her not to be afraid, that they will face everything together, that he will never leave her. When she sees him approaching, she says: "God has spoken to you, hasn't He? I prayed so much that He would convince you and let you see the light that I have not been able to show you!"
From that moment Joseph loves her even more, even if he can't entirely grasp the meaning of what is happening to her, to them… He knows it is God's will, and they are part of it.”
Anna stood up, she picked up the little statue of St. Joseph from the coffee table, and she put it into the nativity scene at its place, in front of Maria, next to the little manger, which was still empty, but ready to welcome the little baby Jesus on Christmas.
She turned to her grandchildren, and she concluded, pointing at the scene behind her:
“And Joseph is there, next to Maria, ready for the little baby that will be born in the next few days, in love with his wife and in adoration of the child that God has entrusted him.”
“Oh, Granny, your stories are so beautiful!” Giulia said enthusiastically, “Tell me you have more stories for us…”
“Yes, darling. Tomorrow I will tell you my favorite story. I left it for last, because it is the one my mum told me every year…”
Mario turned to his parents, who had been silently listening, and he asked them: “Can we stay after lunch tomorrow to listen to the last story?”
“Of course, children” Silvia answered, “I remember your granny’s favorite figure, and I can assure you that I love that story!”
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