The Empty Egg

Jeremy was born with a twisted body and a slow mind.

At the age of 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 spot of light had penetrated the

darkness of his brain. Most of the time, however,

Jeremy just irritated his teacher.

One day she called

his parents and asked them to come in for a consultation.

As the Forresters entered the empty classroom,

Doris said to them, "Jeremy really belongs in a special

school. It isn't fair to him to be with younger

children who don't have learning problems.

Why, there is a five-year gap between his age

and that of the other students." Mrs. Forrester

cried softly into a tissue, while her husband spoke.

"Miss Miller," he said, "there is no school of that

kind nearby. It would be a terrible shock for

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 had left, staring

at the snow outside the window. Its coldness seemed

to seep into her soul. She wanted to sympathize

with the Forresters. After all, their only child had a

terminal illness. But it wasn't fair to keep him

in her class. She had 18 other youngsters to teach,

and Jeremy was a distraction. Furthermore, he would

never learn to read and write. Why waste any more time

trying. As she pondered the situation, guilt washed

over her. Here I am complaining when my problems

are nothing compared to that poor family, she thought.

"Lord, please help me to be more patient with Jeremy."

From that day on, she tried hard to ignore Jeremy's

noises and his blank stares. Then one day, he limped

to her desk, dragging his bad leg behind him.

"I love you, Miss Miller," he exclaimed, loud enough

for the whole class to hear. The other students

snickered, and Doris' face turned red. She stammered,

"Wh-why that's very nice, Jeremy. N-now, please take your seat"

Spring came, and the children talked excitedly

about the coming of Easter. Doris told them the story

of Jesus, and then to emphasize the idea of new

life springing forth, she gave each of the children a

large plastic egg. "Now," she said to them,

"I want you to take this home and bring it back

tomorrow with something inside that shows

new life. Do you understand?" "Yes, Miss Miller,"

the children responded enthusiastically....all except

for Jeremy. He listened intently; his eyes never

left her face. He did not even make his usual noises.

Had he understood what she had said about Jesus'

death and resurrection? Did he understand the

assignment? Perhaps she should call his parents and

explain the project to them.

That evening, Doris' kitchen sink stopped up. She

called the landlord and waited an hour for him to come

by and unclog it. After that, she still had to shop

for groceries, iron a blouse, and prepare a vocabulary

test for the next day. She completely forgot about phoning

Jeremy's parents.

The next morning, 19 children came to school, laughing

and talking as they placed their eggs in the large wicker

basket on Miss Miller's desk. After they completed their

math lesson, it was time to open the eggs. In the first egg,

Doris found a flower. "Oh yes life," she said. When plants

peek through the ground, we know that spring is here."

A small girl in the first row waved her arm.

"That's my egg, Miss Miller," she called out.

The next egg contained a plastic butterfly, which looked very real.

Doris held it up. "We all know that a caterpillar changes

and grows into a beautiful butterfly." Yes, that's new life, too."

Little Judy smiled proudly and said, "Miss Miller, that

one is mine." 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 must be Jeremy's she thought,

and of course, he did not understand her instructions.

If only she had not forgotten to phone his parents. Because

she did not want to embarrass him, she quietly set the egg aside

and reached for another. 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,

"Do you know why the tomb was empty?"

"Oh, yes", Jeremy said, "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 schoolyard, Doris 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 his casket....all of them empty.

If this blesses you, please pass it on.

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