HappyEaster everyone. I shred this story a few years ago on Easter but I share it with you again today because, well...it's agreat story.
It is
called “What was in Jeremy’s Egg.” It is by Ida Mae Kempel
Jeremy was born with a twisted body and a slow mind.
At age 12
he was still in second grade, seemingly unable to learn.
His
teacher, Doris Miller, often became exasperated with him.
He
would squirm in his seat, drool and make grunting noises.
At other times, he spoke clearly and distinctly,
as if a
light had penetrated the darkness of his brain.
Most of the time, however, Jeremy simply irritated
his teacher
and
disturbed the other children.
One day his teacher called in his parents to come
to St.
Theresa’s School for a conference.
She
told them, “Jeremy really needs to be in a special school.
It isn’t fair to him to be in a class with
younger children
who don’t have learning problems.
Why there is a five year age gap
between him and the other children.”
Jeremy’s
mother began to cry softly, while her husband spoke,
“Mrs. Miller,” he said, “There is no school
of that kind nearby.
It would be a terrible shock to Jeremy if we
had to take him out of this school. We know he really likes it here.”
Doris sat for a long time after they left, staring
out the window as the snow began to fall.
She wanted
to sympathize with Jeremy’s parents…after all he was their only son and he
had a terminal illness. But still it wasn’t fair to the rest of the class. She had 18
other youngsters to teach and Jeremy was a distraction.
As she
pondered the situation guilt washed
over her,
“O God,” she said aloud,
“Here I am complaining
when my problems are nothing compared to
that poor family.
Please help me to be more patient with
Jeremy.
From that day on, she tried
hard to ignore Jeremy’s noises and blank stares.
Then one day Jeremey approached her desk,
dragging his bad leg behind him.
“I love you Miss Miller,” he exclaimed.
The other students snickered, and
Doris’ face turned red.
She stammered,
“Why…Jeremy, that’s very nice; now please take you seat.”
Spring came and the
children talked excitedly about Easter.
Miss Miller told them the story of Jesus,
and then to emphasize the idea of new life
springing forth,
she gave each of them a plastic egg.
“Now,” she said, “I want
you to take this egg home with you tonight
and bring it back tomorrow with something
inside that shows new life.
Do you understand?”
“Yes Miss Miller,” the
children shouted enthusiastically… all except Jeremy who simply stared
intently at his teacher. Did he understand, she
wondered, making a mental note to call his parents and
explain the project to them.
That evening, Doris’ sink
stopped up. A couple of other diversions and sure enough, she forgot to call Jeremy’s parents.
The next morning the 19
children came into school laughing and talking as they placed their eggs in the large
wicker basket on Miss Miller’s desk.
The time came to open the
eggs.
In the first egg, Doris found a flower.
“Oh yes,” she said, “A flower is certainly
a sign of new life.
When a plant peeks through the earth
we know that Spring is near.”
A small girl in the first
row waved her hand, “That’s my egg, Miss Miller.”
The next egg contained a
plastic butterfly, which looked very real. Doris held it up. “We all know that a
caterpillar changes and becomes a beautiful butterfly. Yes
that is new life too.” Little Judy smiled, “That
one is mine Miss Miller.”
Next, Doris found a rock
with moss on it. She explained that moss too showed life. Billy spoke up from the back of the
classroom. “My daddy helped me,” he beamed.
Then Doris opened the
fourth egg. She gasped. The egg was empty. Surely it was Jeremy’s egg, she thought, and
of course, he did not understand the assignment. If only she had not forgotten to phone
his parents.
Not wanting to embarrass
him, she placed the egg aside and reached for the next one. Suddenly, Jeremy spoke up, “Miss Miller,
aren’t you going to talk about my egg?” Flustered, Doris replied, “But Jeremy,
your egg is empty.” He looked into her eyes and said
softly, “Yes, but Jesus’ tomb was empty too.”
Time stopped. When she
could speak again, Doris asked him, “Jeremy, do you know why the tomb was
empty?” “Oh yes,” Jeremy replied,
“Jesus was killed and put in there. Then his father raised Him up”
The recess bell rang.
While the children excitedly ran out to the playground, Doris sat and cried. The cold inside her
melted completely away.
Three months later Jeremy
died. Those who paid their respects at the
mortuary were surprised to see 19 eggs on top of the casket, all of them
empty.
I don’t think I have to
add anything to that story.
The empty tomb is the core event of our
faith.
It is what we celebrate this day!
Happy Easter everyone!
