Mary, Did You Know
This is one of my favorite scenes from my short story, “Mary, Did You Know” which shares a mother’s memories of events leading up to and following that one holy night, showing there’s really nothing new under the sun when it comes to motherhood.
My story is only the first in Christmas Fiction Off the Beaten Path, a wonderful collection that varies in genre from fantasy to mystery, so there should be something for everyone within. You can purchase a copy of your own right here.
As an historical fiction author, I wanted to share a little about my process in writing this particular short story, which also falls under the category of historical fiction. For my resources, I relied on the Bible, pure and simple. I read from the English Standard Version (ESV) because I like its adherence to the original text while still being readable and not archaic in form and language. It also has great footnotes that helped in my preparation for the writing.
The first thing I did was I made a timeline of events for Mary. Because there’s two primary accounts of Jesus’ birth, I wanted to be certain I had things lined up correctly.
After that, I really just let Jesus take the wheel. I knew I wanted the story to capture those everyday moments of motherhood that even Mary might have experienced, from changing baby Jesus’ poopy diaper (yes, even Jesus pooped!) to the turmoil of going into exile with a toddler. Yet through it all, God proved He had it all under control. This was His Son and He had a plan.
Because my story was inspired by the song of the same title, in my first draft I actually divided each section by the lines of the song. So for example, one of the first scenes I wrote was where Mary is washing clothes in the river and baby Jesus is crying for her, which came out of the line “Mary, did you know, that your baby boy would one day walk on water.” This scene was also, of course, inspired by similar instances that occurred every day to me as a young mom.
I attempted to find connection with Mary by focusing on those instances where I, too, struggled as a mother, because it was honestly one of the things that kept me sane through the infant years. Some people thrive with infants, and struggle with toddlers, but I’ve been absolutely the opposite. So one of the things I’d remind myself when I was up once again in the middle of the night nursing or holding a crying child, was that even Mary must have done this. Jesus was the Son of God, but he was also human, and his mother was definitely human.
I hope I’ve intrigued you enough to encourage you to purchase a copy of the anthology featuring this short story. If you’d like to buy one from me, just click here and PayPal will lead the way. I will sign all copies purchased directly from me! 🙂 I now also have matching Christmas book earrings for sale, so check it out!
I pray your Christmas season is going well with lots of time with those you love! May God remain at the center of your holiday, and Christ’s birth never taken for granted for the wondrous, holy gift that it was!
Blessings on you this Christmas!
