A Fortress of Nature Connected with the Christmas Story
When my dad was a young boy his uncle (Mami Churso) told him that they were going to leave the sheep camp the next morning and take a long walk to the town of Amadiya for supplies. Mami Churso said that he believed my dad was strong enough to keep-up with the men on the journey. Dad felt good inside about his uncle’s expression of faith in him and it motivated him to prove himself worthy of his uncle’s high esteem.
Shortly after the next sunrise and a quick breakfast, dad and Mami Churso said blessings and farewells to all their loved ones before turning to leave. An Assyrian man from a nearby camp had also joined them so he could bring supplies to his family as well.
The trail was rough and this time there were no mules to ride. The men traveled quietly and dad knew this was because they did not want to give away their presence to Kurdish renegades who might be nearby. Excitement and fear gave him added energy.
My dad pushed himself to keep the men’s pace and only stopped when Mami Churso paused to drink from a little spring. This particular spring gave such a small trickle of water that only one person at a time could drink from it. When it was his turn, dad was grateful for the cold water and since then he has often said “Mia qarirey–khaiye basimey!” which translated means “Cold water–good life!”
After two hours of steady walking, Mami Churso paused and looked through the trees at something in the distance. The dad and the other man stopped too.
“Amadiya!” He exclaimed as he pointed-up to the town on top of a far-off mesa.
Dad looked and saw the distant, rocky up-thrust. If he had known about the Hopi Natives living on mesas in northern Arizona, he might have wondered at the similarities. But he would not know anything about northern Arizona Natives until many decades later. Still he was glad to see a new and unusual place, even if it still was a long way off.
A sound loose rock made him look away from the mesa. The men had started walking again and were already about to disappear into the trees lining the trail ahead. He broke into a run to catch-up with them. Everyone’s pace had picked-up in anticipation.
Each of them now walked in a different kind of silence. They let go of their watchfulness. Their private thoughts were focused on what they would find and enjoy once they reached top. For Mami Churso it was tobacco for his pipe, flour and candy for the women, and salt for the sheep. Dad thought about a nice, cold soda, which only made his mouth feel more dry.
Soon enough they were standing at the base of the mesa and pausing to look-up at the rocky walls. In those days there was only one steep trail carved out of the stone that everyone used in order to reach the top. But before their ascent Mami Churso admonished dad.
“We are going up to a place where Kurds and our people live together in peace. But for thousands of years (long before Jesus the Messiah) this was just our place. And this is where the wisemen were living until they saw the star and brought their gifts to baby Jesus.”
“Our people have fought-off many attackers here. But we let friendly Kurds go up there and build their homes. Now there are more of them than us! Even when we had to leave Asheetha, and our enemies followed us here, we did not let them get up to the top and hurt us anymore. The Kurds living here did not turn against us. So now let us go up in peace!”
With that he turned toward the steep trail and dad followed his uncle up toward the rocky fortress. His heart was pounding when he finally reached the top, but he lifted his sights to look around and suddenly the world changed.
The commanding view inspired him, while the densely packed houses and shops took dad’s mind off of his weariness. The people in the shops welcomed and called to him, and a cold soda was soon purchased. Momi Churso also enjoyed a sweet, tingling drink before getting busy with gathering the more important supplies.
They returned to their camp before dark with something for everyone else in the family to enjoy. It was a day that my dad still remembers–a day when he met a manly challenge and reached the top of an ancient fortress.
Later, as a young man, dad found an even better fortress, and became a place of refuge, refreshment, and rest to him for many decades. In that fortress he has overcome many attacks with the help of a Supernatural barrier that has both shielded and sustained him.
This fortress is the best part of Dad’s heritage. But it also welcomes and refreshes whoever pursues it. In fact, any who reach its heights will still find refreshment and shelter. They will also see signs, follow them, and bring their love-gifts along to share with the needy people they meet each day.
“The LORD is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer, my God, my rock, in whom I take refuge; my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.” Psalm 18: 2
