GUEST POST BY VALERIE BOYER
It’s Wednesday!
As we have seen, Jesus is having an extremely peaceful, beautiful non-controversial fun-filled week, like we are all having during the age of Da Rona. And to kick off today’s events, early in the day, history suspects that Judas is going to make the deal of the lifetime. It was a cheap transaction to sell out Jesus’ location, and will soon learn “the cheap stuff and the free stuff always cost way more than we could afford,” a Black proverb. But we’ll redeem him at a later date for his moment in humanity of doing something that we have all been prone to do, that being, engaging in some act of betrayal. Moving on.
This is also the day where Jesus gets taken care of by an essential worker. The essential workers in my community have been very open and vulnerable about their experience, and we are so blessed. And they’ve been kind and gracious enough to share some of their triumphant victories over COVID 19, and how people are being healed. However, one of my sista’ friends in particular tells a different story.
Her story is one of a patient who came in and tested positive, while his household family members tested negative, which meant being quarantined and isolated alone. Not alone, as in not being surrounded by people. Doctors, nurses, lap technicians, etc. were all there, but none of them were present for him, in the way his family would’ve been. Ironically enough, he was in his 30’s. Once she realized how lonely he was, she made it her mission to go and sit with him 2 extra hours after her shift was over, everyday he was there. She’d tell me of the beautiful stories of how they basically shared their lives. He’d spent a life of helping people as well. She was inspired by him. She felt re-ignited to make a difference in the world. What a gift they seemed to be to each other.
Unfortunately, her patient didn’t get any better. Because of the current policies, none of his family could physically come and say goodbye. Thing is, whether he had been this amazing person with an amazing life, or this person who lived this horrendous life, none one deserves to die alone. She tried to negotiate with her boss to no avail. At the risk of losing her job, she brought some of her anointing oil, to anoint him, and cover him in prayer. No, his “family” as we’d define it wasn’t there, but they had become family to each other. He wasn’t alone.
When Jesus was eating with his boys, days before he was about to die, Mary showed up to the dinner, uninvited. In the Luke 7 account, she is roasted for being a sex-worker in contact with Jesus. Jesus had to get them together, quickly, by letting them know that she took better care of him than they did, and it isn’t even her house. In the Matthew 26 and Mark 14 account though, Jesus tells us that her anointing him with perfume oil, and intimately wiping his feet with her hair, was all in preparation for his death, and burial. She was essential. I believe we call it “essential”, because “sacrificial” would just be too honest. She had to do this for the man she cared for and loved. She knew the risk going into this, and because of her willingness to sacrifice herself, Jesus was not alone. Women are often left out in the biblical narrative, and when they are, they’re usually being downed for their natural born existence, up to and including Mary in this story, but Jesus reframes this image of her. He makes us pay attention to the essential worker, who instead of being able to save the day in this instance, will actually be present in preparing for death. She knew there was nothing she could do about what was coming, but she could be there. She was essential.
It shouldn’t have taken a pandemic to show us how essential you are to the tapestry of humanity, in the same way it shouldn’t have had to take Jesus preparing for death to show us how essential this woman is the tapestry of his divinity. But we’re here now. And what a gift you are. We couldn’t do this without you, Mary’s.
To those of you who are essential workers, you, are much like Mary, the essential worker. According to Jesus, you are giving some of the greatest service, the service of the heart. You’re called to this. You’re built for this. You’re equipped for this. You are doing the divine work. Whether it be formally, or formally, those of you who have been present, even unto death, the holy story can’t exist, without you. You actually take after your girl Mary, the essential worker.
Be kind and gentle with yourselves, because Calvary soon comes, and make sure you thank a Mary in your life, even if it is yourself.
Born and raised in Galveston, TX, curated at Howard University, journeying to Detroit, and now Columbus, OH, Valerie has spent her life through the lens of preaching, praying, poetry and activism. Today is no different. Her love for her God, family, community, both locally and global fuels her passion for all that she does. Her favorite quote is “when life gives you lemonade, sprinkle black girl magic, make apple juice, and leave people wondering how it happened.”
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