I struggled through the haunting meadows of Central Park as long as I could. It was hard to follow the paths of the apostles in the dark, but I had to. I had to see the Master today, no matter how much it took.
Well, maybe I phrased that awkwardly. I had seen the Master every day, but never spoken to him. He seemed to know everything, but I doubted he knew that I existed. That'll change tonight, I thought. One of the apostles always carried a wagon with him - David? Was that his name? He seemed to know the Master best. They were like brothers. I longed for that kind of relationship with him. Any kind of relationship with him, for that matter. I followed the tracks from the wagon wheels as far as I could, until I reached a chain-link fence. I could hardly contain myself. After all this time, here I was. The Junkyard of Gethsemane.
The Master had looked sad all of today. There was something distant about him. Like he was dreading something. But what could the Master possibly be afraid of? No one, nothing would ever hurt him. He came over by the fence, but did not see me. Instead, he simply set down a jug of wine and a loaf of bread, and then he walked away. The thought crossed my mind of what I'd have to do. But, was it right? Maybe not. But it wasn't exactly wrong...
Before I knew what was happening, I climbed the fence and silently slipped inside the junkyard. What I was doing wasn't wrong, per se. I wasn't stealing; I was just moving something. I picked up the bread and the wine and slipped into the shadows. For what seemed an eternity, I watched the Master watch his flock as they played and talked of the time they had spent together.
Suddenly, the Master stood up and asked the one called Jeffery to help him move a door. My heart began to race, as the door they were moving was not far from me. Once again, they did not see me. What, was I invisible? I kept watching. The Master, with help from Jeffery, set the door down on the ground like a table and called to the apostles to sit around it. Oh no. He would be looking for the bread and the wine now. I swallowed hard and braced myself for what I would say when he came. I would tell him I was guarding it from wild animals, and tell him my name, and oh, what was I thinking? This had to be one of the most stupid things I had ever done in my life! Now the Master would hate me. I shut my eyes tightly as he walked up, hoping he would walk away temporarily to give me time to reset the bread. To my horror, the sound of his footsteps on gravel stopped.
"Come out, Gracie. I know you're there."
My heart stopped. Had the Master seen me before, when he and Jeffery came for the door? And how did he know my name? I stood up and held the bread and wine out to him, trembling.
"Gracie, my sister, you shouldn't be afraid of me. I've known you were following me this whole time. Why didn't you say anything?"
"I... too shy, I guess."
The Master smiled in that unmistakable way of his. A street lamp flicked on behind him, making his long blonde curls glow. Taking the food from me, he continued to smile. "I wish you could have joined us sooner. The others would love you. Unfortunately, I must go away soon."
"Why?" I was filled with panic. "Where are you going? Can you take me with you?"
That was the first time I had heard the Master laugh. He took a step closer to me and put his hand on my shoulder. "I wish I could tell you, but it is only for me and my Father to know. Until we meet again, Gracie." He kissed my forehead, then dipped his thumb in the wine and drew a heart on the spot he had kissed. Just like the heart on his own forehead. It was too much for me to bear. He was incredibly tall, so I stepped up onto the crate I had been hiding behind and pulled him in close. He let go after what was actually a long time, but that didn't matter to me. That moment could have lasted the rest of my life and still been too short.
The Master raised the bread high above his head. In a voice I had never heard from him before, he said an unfamiliar blessing. "Baruch atah, Adonai, Elo-hainu melech haolam." I wondered if he was the only person who knew the meaning of these words. Handing a piece to each of his apostles, he said quietly, "Take and eat; this is my body, which has been given to you for the forgiveness of sins." What? How was that possible? And above it all, the forgiveness of sins? There was no way that could be so easily obtained! He glared at me as if to silence my thoughts. He poured the wine into two cups, then raised the cups above his head and repeated the blessing. The great mystery again. "Take and drink; this is my blood of the new covenant, which is poured out for you for the forgiveness of sins." Who was the Master, that he could pour out his blood and forgive people's sins through it? ...Could he forgive mine? At the moment the thought crossed my mind, he looked up at me and nodded, smiling.
After the apostles finished the bread and wine, the Master began removing the paint from their faces. This saddened me slightly, for I thought their face paint was beautiful. Wait, something was wrong. What was wrong? David! David had gone missing, and I hadn't even noticed! I began to sing a song to calm myself, realizing as well that all of the apostles had sang to the Master, so why shouldn't I? I tried to remember a song I had learned, and it came into my head immediately. Leaning up against the wall, I began to sing.
On the willows, there
We hung up our lyres
For our captors there
Required
Of us songs
And our tormentors mirth
The other apostles evidently recognized the song, if not the singer, and began to harmonize with me.
On the willows, there
We hung up our lyres
For our captors there
Required
Of us songs
And our tormentors mirth
The refrain was coming up, and although it had the saddest lyrics, it is definitely the most fun part to sing. Jerry took all the notes he possibly could up an octave, making all the others laugh.
Saying: "Sing us one of the songs of Zion
Sing us one of the songs of Zion"
But how can we sing - sing the Lord's songs
In a foreign land?
Jeffery picked up the melody in his recorder and improvised for a verse. Most of the others laughed and rolled their eyes, but they could not help agreeing that it added a nice color to the song. Finally, the ending. No one was really ready for it, but we all sang it together anyways.
On the willows, there
We hung up our lives…
The Master smiled at us all one last time, telling us to stay where we were. He walked away and tried to hide behind a broken-down car. Collapsing to his knees, he folded his hands so tightly his knuckles turned ghastly white. "My heart is ready to break with grief," I barely heard him choke before succumbing to sleep.
I awoke to yet another voice I had never heard from the Master: his anger. "BE GONE, SATAN!" he screamed. "Thou shalt pay homage to The Lord thy God and serve Him only." Something off in the distance caught my eye. I must not have been the only one, for the apostles were starting to wake up as well. In the lights coming from a police car, I saw a familiar silhouette. David? Where was he? And why was he back in a police car, of all things? The Master's body went completely rigid. "Friend, do quickly what you came for." David stepped forward timidly and kissed the Master on the cheek.
What just happened? Better yet, what was happening now? Police poured out of the car, armed to the teeth. They picked the Master up, standing him up on a barrel and tying his wrists to the fence. "Master! Master, what's happening?" The cry was not only my own. The Master did not reply to us; he simply kept babbling to the officers something about swords and clubs and teaching in the synagogue. Merrell grabbed an umbrella and started to swing it at the officers. The Master turned directly to him with a stern face and voice. "Put down your sword! Those who live by the sword die by the sword!" Merrell dropped the umbrella, leaving us all to watch helplessly as the Pharisee police murdered our beloved Master. We sang with him until he died and fell asleep at his feet. Surely this man was a son of God!
When I awoke the next morning, Robin touched my shoulder, affirming the conclusion to which I'd come the night before. "Long live God." We buried the Master in the junkyard, then walked out in solemn silence. West through Central Park. West as strangers. I turned back around for one last look at the junkyard and the life I might have known when I was stopped dead in my tracks.
The sun rose over Gethsemane. The sun paled horribly in comparison to the figure it held in silhouette. His blonde Afro, his giant clown shoes, the black teardrops running down from his eyes.
The Master.
Anyway, that's my story, and I hope you liked it! The characters are all taken from the 1973 movie starring Victor Garber as Jesus and David Haskell as John/Judas. The scenes are mostly based on the movie, with certain details changed for Biblical accuracy. My portrayal of Jesus here is half based on Victor Garber and half on my wonderful friend Ben, who played Jesus when his school did Godspell. The song Gracie sings is On the Willows by Stephen Schwartz. The blessing Jesus says is a common Hebrew blessing which translates to "Blessed are you, Lord God, King of the universe ". Please review!