The Shepherd Nook - For the love of one woman

I have been on a long mental hiatus where I was devoid of sound inspiration to write anything worthwhile for the homepage. My brain was under a heavy dark cloud meanwhile the rain was not imminent. I wonder when the literary heavenly gates would open and let through a ray of sunlight to the pad that I used as my writing draft.

Miraculously, I can feel a beaming light burning through the pages as I entitled this piece "For the love of one woman". Where did that inspiration come from, you may wonder? I have not the slightest of clues or maybe because of all the weddings that are slated to happen this year. The young men are finally breaking down the barrier of fear of commitment and it should be venerated.
In the pages of the Old Testament, many beautiful stories are written that capture my imagination. The story of Jacob and Rachel is that mesmerizing. Some of the narrations invite me to wonder if love does not border foolishness. Love can impel a man or a woman to do the most unthinkable and the most daring of acts. There seems to be neither rhyme nor reason to love. The love of a man for a woman is just what it is; the way God intended it to be. There is no possible explanation for God's love toward humanity, it is to be cherished and accepted as such.

This notion brought me to a story found in the Bible in the book of Genesis where Jacob after fleeing before Esau because of his trickery in receiving the blessings due his brother was summoned by his father, Isaac, to go to Laban's house and there, he would have found his bride to be, amongst his people. The scene for the encounter could have not taken place in any better setting. Oh just by the well where the fountain of life is found through the incessant flow of water! God must be a love guru to plan the meeting of two hearts, oh by the well. I can understand this vividly coming from the rural side of Haiti where in the wee morning hours, young lads and young ladies would go to the canals or to the "sous" to draw water for the entire family. You can fathom how great the feeling would be as you go draw water; you are drawn to one of the finest beauty. You may end up getting chastised by your parents due to the delaying in returning home.
Rachel must have awakened to the premonition that something great was readying to happen. Just maybe she skipped her way to the well that very day. The Bible does not entrust us with such details but it did speak on Jacob's eyes locking on Rachel's. He noticed an electrifying soul and as the Bible puts it, Rachel was a beautiful woman in every facet and Jacob's eyes remarked that fact. How would he get this woman to marry him? He probably asked? To Jacob it was an inevitability, it was meant to be. Jacob quickly realized the price to pay to receive these soft hands in marriage; he must work for seven years. Seven years…is that all? Maybe those were the very words flowing through his spirit and he joyfully accepted the offer. Jacob served the seven years as if they were mere days. If Jacob could pen beautiful words like the psalmists of days old, he would have confined his soul to serene melodic prose. He would have concocted chapters and verses of emotion-filled passages that we would revel on till this day. Nevertheless, his determined and relentless heart has poetized love in its most magnificent flair.
Love rendered the arduous years short as if the motion of his heart raced the time for he was deeply connected with Rachel. Seeing Rachel in her distinctive glamour lightened the load of hard labor yet reenergized him to endure the daily challenges. As the years, the months, the days passed, a serene breeze flutters about his soul knowing the woman shall be his. As it is written in the Bible, the seven years would not be sufficient to satisfy Laban's requirements. The master of trickery would be himself deceived by the dirtiest of tricks. The woman he readied himself to know that night after the seven years of hard labor was not there for him. It is reminiscent of Isaac reaching out to bless Esau but Isaac was tricked into blessing Jacob. Maybe those vivid images are playing in Jacob's head thinking he is being repaid for all of his ills. They say that love is blind but I would say that love's sight is so clear that love can detect the person he or she is interested in. Leah, that night, had his physique but Jacob's heart belonged to that one woman and he vowed not to let her out of his reach. The love drawn by the well could not be tossed in the sea of forgetfulness.
Laban asked Jacob to serve seven more years to receive the hands of Rachel. He was deterred in his determination for love was at the core of his motivation. To let go of Rachel is to extinguish the power of love in one's heart. To remove love from the heart of man is to destroy the very fabric of his existence. Seven more years were inconsequential. Paul, in the book of Corinthians coined the powerful words concerning love being patient and Jacob's actions proved it. Love does endure it all. Love is godly, love is not humanly. It is only God who could have penetrated the heart of Jacob into enduring till the end to have the woman his heart so desired. For the love of one woman! For the love of Rachel! _________________

Moved Permanently