A Picture of Worship

Once upon a time there was a land with no color and no music. Birds didn't sing, crickets didn't chirp. The gray grass flowed into the gray sky. Trees were gray with gray leaves. Everything was black and white and shades of gray. In a world with no music and no color there is very little to smile or laugh about. The children seldom smiled and never laughed.

One day the children were in the school yard. They tossed gray rocks at the gray leaves, watching them fall to the ground. They drew circles in the dirt with sticks and walk around, slowly - melancholy. As the children played in the yard, they heard the strangest sound. It began high and then, smooth as glass, descended. The sound moved around seamlessly. Everyone was silent and stopped what they were doing to listen. The sound grew closer as it dipped and leaped and swirled around. The sound was wonderful and strange.

The children looked and saw a stranger approaching the school yard. He stood out of the gray landscape because he was wrapped in hues that were not gray. His presence made everyone stop and stare. The sound continued to flow from the brilliant man. He walked into the school yard and stood among the children.

The children listened to the man's voice. It did things they had never heard. "What is that sound?" the children asked.

The man answered, "This sound is singing." He then sang more. The children listened with delight as his voice rang in their ears, filling their hearts with warmth and joy.

One child said, "I wish I could sing."

The man laughed. His eyes twinkled and his laughter seemed to make the entire world leap. "You can sing," the man said.

"How?" cried the children.

"I will teach you," said the man.

"Who taught you to sing?" the children asked.

Again the man laughed. His laughter infected the children and they began to laugh too. They were delighted in this new experience, because they had never laughed before. "I sang before the world was created," he said. The children were confused because this man did not look old - he didn't even have a beard. His eyes sparkled a whimsical spark as if he knew a great secret and was going to tell them.

The man opened his mouth and sang a song that took the breath from the children. Then he taught them to sing the song. The children sang and sang, erupting into harmonies that wove together in a vibrant tapestry. As they sang their legs began to move and they started to dance. The children danced and danced, stepping here and there, singing, laughing, and dancing.

With every step of delight that the children took, the world beneath their feet changed. It started to look like the man. The gray grass became a hue that the children learned was green. The sky turned blue. The trees became brown with leaves of orange, red, and yellow. The sun shone a brilliant yellow-orange glow. Flowers became purple, pink, red, and blue. The children danced and danced filling the world with music and color.