Children, I Tell You of Noah
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Looking out the children could see limitless sea. The rain had ended and now the waters were calm and a few mountain tops were visible nearby with spiraling smoke that emanated from the tops of the mountains. These were, of course, from fires at other refugee camps that had been established on the remaining dry land. What the youngest children did not know was that no one had really determined how many people had been rescued during the deluge and taken to these camps and only a small handful of people remained.
The children were trying to warm themselves around a blazing fire and the adults were setting up dwellings with tents and scraps of tree limbs, brush and tarps, gravely discussing with camp leaders how to use the supplies that they had brought. An elderly man, who had been keeping an eye on the children, feeling sorry for their little souls, decided at that moment to tell them stories. The adults didn't have much need of him because he was too old to lift and carry heavy objects. He also knew exactly what stories to tell them.
He knew that this type of flooding had happened before because of the many legends about a great historic flood. He had spent most of his life teaching courses that covered religions of the world and so he knew the flood legends of many different cultures. He was now prepared to share these with the children while the camps were getting set up. The elderly man didn't know what their long-term futures held. He wanted to share these stories with the children to reassure them that people could survive such hardships.
"Oh, children, look what I found." He gazed at the small faces that he had just washed. There were no longer mud smudges and streaks from where their tears were running.
"Is that hot chocolate?" one of the older girls asked.
He had carried some hot chocolate and bottled water with his supplies when he packed up and now he had heated the water in a pot that was hanging over the fire. "Oh, yes, it is. He gave them a big grin and sat in front of the fire, and continued, "I thought I might tell you guys a couple of stories. You know, this flooding, it has happened before. Some of you may be familiar with a tale or two of such a thing."
A young boy asked, "Is it like the story of Noah?"
"Yes, exactly," the elderly man replied, "and there are a few others that I will tell you, but the story of Noah is certainly the first that I wanted to share with you. So, please, drink some of this hot cocoa while I tell you a little story."
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| Noah was a good man. No
one could blame him for doing anything wrong. Everyone else, however, was very different from Noah. God took notice. God had created these creatures in His image and felt that they had failed, all except Noah. So many people were filled with greed that every person cared less about their neighbors. God didn't want to destroy his creation, but was appalled by their wickedness. He decided to create a great rain that would last for forty days and forty nights. It was to cover the whole Earth and drown all life. He did, however, decide to save Noah, his family and the animals from the land and the air, which meant two of each animal: boy and girl. Noah's family included his three sons, Shem, Ham and Japheth and their wives. God told Noah to build a massive boat to carry his family and animals throughout the rains and the flooding. Noah set out to build this boat and his sons helped him. Shortly after Noah finished building the boat, the rains came, filling rivers, lakes and oceans. It seemed that the whole world was covered. Had God forgotten about Noah? God remembered, though. The rain stopped and the flooding finally stopped, and, after some time, the boat came to rest upon a mountain. "Just like we are on a mountain, now, children," the elderly man broke in. The waters went down even more, and Noah decided to send out a raven to see if it would find land. The raven did not return and Noah wasn't sure what to think. He decided to send out his trustworthy dove. The next day, Noah sent him out and he returned shortly after. Finally, seven days later, he sent his dove again. Noah did not expect him to return, but the dove did, carrying an olive branch in his mouth. When Noah saw the olive branch, he knew that the dove had found dry land. Noah and his family left the boat and lit some good-smelling powders to please God. God enjoyed the pleasing smells and told Noah that he would not destroy mankind this way again. God showed Noah and his family the rainbow and told them that anytime they would see this after or before a rain, that they should remember God's promise to them. |
"So, if God promised that it wouldn't happen again, why are we here?" one of the children asked.
"I do not believe that God had anything to do with this. This time, we have no one to blame but ourselves." the elderly man replied.
He pointed to a rainbow. "See, his reminder of his promise." With that, he noticed many of the children had fallen asleep.
Another child said, "I am glad we saved some animals like Noah. My mom told me that the people on the news told her that we had to leave our houses and come to this boat. Mom said that we should take the things the people on the news told us to take with us."
"Yes, I remember," he sighed. "I will tell you more stories later tonight, if you like, but for now, I think it is time that you all get some rest."
Author's
Note: The story is a basic retelling of the story
that I have
always known and I credit the two below sources as refreshers and
contributors
to the telling. I had to leave out many things from the
full
legend and
also some smaller details out of consideration for the requirements of
the project. Not only was I telling the
story, but another
story around it. It was difficult for me
to do this because I want to tell the story and set a decent
scene. I included the things that seemed most
essential to the tale, things that the children would identify
with. I used the frame tale mentioned in the
introduction to set the scene. The
children might want to hear this tale as a reminder that the flood they
have experienced isn't necessarily the
end of the world, but the beginning of a new one.
This is what Noah’s tale really tells us and that is what I
always
thought of when I heard the story. I was
never amused by the story as a child just because there were animals
present. It terrified me and I figured
that I was being told the story so that I would be a better
person. At the end, the elderly man tries to reassure
him that God isn’t responsible for this new flood and that he is near,
watching and waiting as mankind gets through the terrifying mistake
that they
have
brought about.
