The Old Man

Copyright 2010 by madengineer3

Prolog

Old Gabby, as he was called, was considered by most townspeople to be the ugliest man on Earth. His skin had one of those weather beaten looks that reminds people of old leather. He had a full beard and must have bathed regularly since the one positive aspect was that he didn't stink. If asked, nobody in town could even tell you how long old Gabby had lived in the area. In fact none of them ever remembered the first time that they saw him. They were just not at all interested in the reclusive hermit.

Most townsfolk had reached the point where they effectively didn't see Gabby. He was sort of an "invisible" man. Nobody spoke to him, except the shopkeepers who sold him their wares. Gabby didn't seem to mind this treatment, he seemed to be the perfect hermit. He didn't bother anyone and nobody bothered him. Even the local bullies left him alone. Gabby was old, but the bulging muscles under his clothes were apparent to all. Beside that, most people didn't want to find out what a 6'6", 275 pound old man could do.

Gabby's dwelling was outside Puritan Cove, a small New England town that seemed as if even father time had avoided it. The townspeople could have been characters from the book, "The Scarlet Letter". They were, on the whole, a "holier than thou" group. They had been taught, by their pastor (who was also the local school master) that any deviation from his interpretation of what was moral was almost "the unpardonable sin". The "Right Reverend" Smythe was stricter than any of the old "Holiness" preachers of the mid-nineteenth century. He represented himself to be a perfect follower of "God's Law", with the emphasis on the word law.

On the other hand, there was Sarah. Sarah was the moral pariah in town. She had been raped, at age eighteen, and had carried the child. It was stillborn. When talking about her the town folk referred to her "rape" as a coverup for a lewd lifestyle. The fact that Sarah hadn't left town or stayed inside, out of sight, made people mad at her. After all, her condition indicated that either someone in town wasn't an upstanding moral person, or that she had gotten pregnant by being a "loose woman".

Sarah made her livelihood by doing odd jobs. She worked as a seamstress for the local clothing store. She acted as an occasional barmaid at the local tavern. She worked as a janitor for the tavern and a couple of other semi-disreputable firms in town. Basically, she did what she had to do to keep a roof over her head and food on her table. The roof was a spare room over the tavern itself. There were times when keeping food and shelter required her to do things that she didn't really want to do; but she did what was needed to survive. The one need that she couldn't truly take care of was the need for companionship. The mere fellowship of another person that would listen to her problems and aspirations. With the lack of family, this weighed heavily upon her.

The Story

It was three days after Christmas when things seemed to become unbearable for Sarah. Her landlord, Rufus King, who also owned and ran the local tavern had recently been married. His new wife, a "church going woman", named Gertrude, was a devout follower of the "Right Reverend" Smythe. Because of this detail Gertrude was strictly a " teetotaler". Before the minister would officiate at a wedding, Gertrude's husband to be had to join the church and swear to follow its moral teachings. He joined.

Not long after the marriage Gertrude laid down the law to her new husband. He had to get rid of the tavern and stop renting rooms to "sinners". Reluctantly, he agreed to do that.

It was the evening after that ultimatum that he called Sarah over, after work, and gave her the bad new.

"Sarah, I'm going to have to let you go. On top of that I can't rent you the room upstairs anymore."

"Why? Have I done something that wasn't right? I've had this job for a couple of years. What have I done to deserve this?"

"You haven't done anything wrong. My wife and the Rev. Smythe both demand that I close up the tavern and stop renting rooms."

"Why? You don't do anything illegal or immoral. I know that you limit how much your patrons can drink and that you don't allow any funny business here. What is wrong with your keeping the tavern open?"

"I'll never have peace at home if I don't do this. It's already settled. Mid January ownership of this building will be transferred to a young man from church who wants to open a small store. Under the Reverend's orders he is not to hire you, or anyone else who has worked here. I'm sorry."

With that the owner left.

That night Sarah couldn't sleep. She had no idea what she could do. Her possessions consisted of a large suitcase of clothes and small items. She had almost no money. She now realized that she apparently had no friends. She knew that nobody in town would rent her a room, due to the local minister's orders.

The awful day finally came. Late in the afternoon, Sarah was told to leave the building. She did so with tears in her eyes. It was a Friday evening and the weather was foul. There was a mixture of snow and freezing rain falling. Sarah had not been able to come up with anyplace to stay or work. The evening gloom didn't help her spirits. In desperation she found herself praying for deliverance from this awful mess.

About half an hour after being evicted Sarah heard the sound of an Amish style buggy coming up the street. She moved back from the curb to avoid being splashed. She was surprised when the buggy came to a stop, next to her.

A kindly, man's, voice said, "It's awfully nasty weather to be outside. Do you have someplace that you need to go?"

"No Sir, I don't."

"There's no need for the sir, most people just call me old Gabby. I have a spare room, it's not much but you can use it if you wish."

Sarah was unsure of what to do. She knew of old Gabby and had never heard anything bad about him, but she didn't know him.

"Are their any strings attached?"

"No, Sarah."

Sarah immediately noticed that this Gabby knew who she was. She was also aware of the fact that she was very cold and very hungry.

"How much money do you want to let me use the room?"

"I didn't say anything about money, Sarah. Let's just say that having company with whom I can talk is more than enough rent."

Sarah was too distressed to hesitate much. "Thank you for your kind offer, Gabby. I would be glad for the use of the room."

Sarah climbed into the seat next to Gabby and closed the buggy's door. It was dry and comfortable in the buggy. The ride out to Gabby's place took the better part of forty minutes. When Gabby got there he pulled the buggy into his barn, unhitched the horse and proceeded to put some fresh oats and hay in the manger. While the horse ate, Gabby toweled the horse off and then combed out its fur.

Sarah was impressed with the kindness that Gabby showed the horse. He treated it as if it really mattered to him.

When Gabby finished he helped Sarah out of the buggy and they made their way into the small house.

Sarah immediately noticed three things. The warmth, the smell of stew in the pot on the hearth, and the cleanliness of the room.

Old Gabby directed Sarah to a small room that lay behind the chimney for the fireplace

"This room gets its heat from the stones that form the back of the fireplace. You will find it to be warm. It isn't fancy, but it is warm. The toilet is an outhouse out back. There is a coal oil lamp in the other room to make it easy to make your way to the outhouse when you need to use it. Now, are you hungry?"

All Sarah could say was, "Yes sir."

"It's Gabby, there's no need for any sir around here."

They sat at the small table near the fireplace. That table was apparently used for meals, work, studying, or anything else that needed a flat, clean surface. As the meal progressed Sarah asked questions.

"Gabby, how did you know my name?"

"Oh, I've seen you around. In fact I remember when you were born. Your parents really loved you."

"Do you know what it was that killed them?"

"Yes, they both got consumption but, you were spared. God had a specific plan for your life."

"What good has my life been? I have no power or wealth. I'm not educated. Sometimes I'm not even very good." At that Sarah became quiet.

"You are honest and kind Sarah. There are no normal human beings who are good. Humans are flawed and have a brokenness that runs right to their core. You have done as well as any human around you could do."

"How can you say that?"

"I've watched you."

"I haven't seen you. How could you watch me?"

"Just trust me, I have seen you. As a small example, I saw you give that free bowl of soup to the old beggar that showed up to the tavern last Tuesday evening."

"You couldn't have. I was alone at that point."

"None the less I did see you. Just trust me."

Sarah was a bit "spooked" at this point. She was also emotionally exhausted and in need of sleep.

"It's time for you to get some sleep, young lady. You'll find a good lock on the inside of your bedroom door. Have a good night."

"Thank you Gabby!"

Sarah went into her room, put on her one good nightgown and was asleep before she knew it. She had the most restful sleep that she could remember. When she woke up she dressed and bundled up to go out to the outhouse. After returning she found Gabby at a kettle over the fire.

"I hope you like oatmeal, Sarah. That's my normal breakfast."

"Yes, Gabby, I like oatmeal a lot. What can I do to help around here? If I'm going to eat your food and enjoy your shelter I need to do something to help."

"Just rest for a few days. We can discuss that later, and I promise it will be acceptable to you."

The next few days were the most peaceful time Sarah could remember. She spent most of the time near the fire, reading her parents old Bible. The forth day at dinner Gabby started the conversation.

"What have you been reading, Sarah?"

"I've spent most of my time in Proverbs, Psalms, and the Gospels. There is a lot that I don't understand."

"There's a lot most people don't understand, Sarah. You and most of the human race can't begin to grasp what those writers were trying to say. What's one of the things that confuses you the most?"

"Well, in the story of when Jesus was in the wilderness, after His baptism, it says that He was with the wild beasts. Why would wild beasts be around Him?"

"Oh, that's an easy one. You see, the desert gets quite cold at night. Even though men may not recognize the Creator of the universe, the beasts do. They came to provide him warmth, a place to rest his head, and companionship. They had no demands to make, they worshiped Him as was His due."

"I've never heard that before. How about the story where Jesus is between the angry mob and the adulteress? He was writing on the ground and suddenly nobody was willing to throw the first stone."

"Again, that is easy. Do you remember that when they brought her to Jesus saying that they had caught her in the act of adultery?"

"Yes."

"Where was the man who was involved? The law demanded that the man and woman should both be brought to justice. Where was he?"

"I don't know."

"Today what was done would have been called entrapment. Her getting caught was a set-up! One of the people in the crowd was the man. Most of the people in the crowd were in on this evil attempt. Jesus caused the men in the crowd to clearly focus on their own sins. When He then said that the man without sin should cast the first stone, they left. Note that the eldest left first. They had lived longer and had committed more sins and had the most on their minds. Each man saw his own sins while Jesus was writing!"

"But, why didn't He condemn her?"

"God doesn't want to condemn people, He wants to save them. From the Old Testament on through the New Testament God is trying to save those who were willing. That woman was willing."

Sarah pondered what she had heard. She had never before heard the scriptures explained like this. It was as if the words were suddenly alive. "If God doesn't want to condemn, why does He allow pain and suffering?"

"Now you are asking a question to which many people don't really want to know the answer. Are you sure you want the answer?"

"Yes, I do."

"When the heavens and earth were made Adam and Eve were given free will. That is, they could choose to do what they wanted, or choose to do what God wanted. When given the chance they did things their own way, instead of the way that they had been told to do. When they decided to do what they wanted instead of what God wanted they set into motion a sequence of events that are part and parcel of the design of the universe. Let me give you a simple example. Suppose a child is climbing up a hill and sees a piece of rope on the ground. The child's parent has told it not to touch the rope. The child doesn't realize that the rope is holding a support in place that is preventing a large pile of logs from rolling down the hill and into the family's house. The child decides to pull on the rope to see what would happen. In pulling the rope stored gravitational energy in the logs is released. Moments later that energy will damage the family's house. The disobedience turned loose forces about which the child had no understanding. So it is with man's sin. When the first sin was committed, it turned loose powers that mankind, to this day, doesn't understand. Those powers corrupted the beautifully designed world that the Lord had made."

"Oh."

"Let me ask you a personal question, Sarah. Did the local sheriff ever investigate your complaint about the rape?"

With a very nervous look Sarah asked, "Who told you about that?"

"Nobody, I just know more about it than either you or most other people know. I know who assaulted you. Before you even ask it, I had nothing to do with that. However, you should know that God is going to use that assault to set some things right in Puritan Cove."

Sarah looked frightened. "Please, no! It already hurts just to walk down the sidewalk in town. If that is brought back up I don't know if I could handle it."

"I understand Sarah, I understand more completely than you could know. However, when God fixes a problem He helps His people through the fire. You are definitely one of His people."

"How can you say that? Only God knows who are the saved ones."

"That's true. However He sometimes tells His servants things that they need to know. You need to know that you are in the right. This coming Sunday you and I are going to visit the church in Puritan Cove. You will be seen as guiltless by all those people. Many of the 'important people' in town are going to be found to be the Devil's own. Don't worry about it for now. However, please keep up your prayers for the next few days. You will need strength for what is going to happen."

Sarah was gently crying at this point. Gabby took her hand and said, God wants you to relax and trust in His wisdom. Will you try to do that?"

"Yes, but it is hard." As she said those words she felt a peace unlike she had ever felt before.

Gabby smiled and said, "That is good, He has given you the peace you need. Now, go and get a good night's sleep."

The next few days went by quickly. Sarah, following Gabby's directions, spent her time praying for guidance and strength. Finally, Sunday morning arrived. The first hymn had just been sung when Gabby and Sarah entered the church. To say that the congregation was surprised would be a severe understatement.

Pastor Smythe spoke up immediately, "Why are you sinners interrupting our serv......"

At that point Gabby clearly spoke out, "Silence!" and Pastor Smythe's lips kept moving but no sound came forth.

Gabby continued. "A grave injustice has been committed and God has seen fit to bring the guilty to judgment. They have spread their poison for too long. Now, before I continue let me take on my normal form:" Suddenly, where Gabby had been standing, there stood a being like a man clothed in fine linen with a golden belt around his waist. He looked like he was eight or nine feet tall. His face looked like it was made of polished gem stones, and his face shown with an incredible light and his eyes were almost as bright as the sun itself. His arms and legs looked like highly polished bronze. And his voice was overpowering.

Sarah and every other person in the room found themselves either prostrate on the floor or hanging their heads as if in deep shame.

"You have known me a Gabby. My name is Gabriel and I stand in the presence of the Most High God. He has seen fit to save many of you from the great evil that you have done. I am now going to allow Sarah to remember things that have been hidden from her for many years. They have been hidden because they would have been too painful for her to bear at that time. Sarah, stand up and I will prompt your mind so that you can remember those things. The rest of you look at her as she speaks."

Sarah stood and started to speak. "The night I was raped there were three men involved. They all had hoods over their heads but they had dropped their pants. All three men had distinct scars or birthmarks on them. The ringleader had a brownish birthmark that looked a lot like a billy goat's head as seen straight on. It was on the front of his left thigh. He is the one who raped me first. The second man had a nasty looking scar that ran from just above his right knee to his hip. It looked like it had been very sloppily closed up. The third man also had a scar. It was about on his belt line and ran from his left hip around the edge of his body. I don't know how I remember these things now, but I can see them as clearly as I can see you all sitting there."

Gabby said,"come here now!" It was a terrifying sound. Almost immediately the pastor, the head of the trustees and the head of the elders of the church were standing facing the congregation with their backs to Sarah.

Gabriel pointed a finger at them and their pants were suddenly on the floor around their feet. The pastor had the goat like birth mark and the others had the scars.

Gabriel continued: "You, as a congregation have been judging innocent children of the Most High God. You know the rule: 'Judge not lest ye be judged!' Because you didn't do this out of malice you are going to be forgiven, but what you thought were riches being stored up in heaven because of your supposed good works are in fact sins that you will have to live with. There is one man in this congregation who is truly a godly man. His name is Rufus King. You would do well to have him take over the ministry here and the mastering of the school. As for his wife, Gertrude, she had better realize that it is only for his sake that she will not be going with these three evil men. She loved to gossip and run people down. Gossip and murder are quite closely related. They both depend upon hatred. She now owes her life to her husband. She had better learn repentance."

There was now loud wailing coming from Gertrude.

"Silence, woman, or you will go with these men." It was suddenly quiet.

"Now, if you have followed my instructions you will note that Sarah is robed like I am and has a glow about her. That is the reflection of the Shechinah glory that filled the Tabernacle. I have known my position as an angel for millenia, she hasn't yet fully realized that she, like Elijah is going to be taken up with me. You all have provided her a little hell here. These three evil men are going to join some other evil doers in the abyss until the judgment day. We will be going now, but be warned: very few people get awakened in time to turn around their lives. You must learn to love one another and bear one another's burdens."

There was no sound or flash of light. The three men, Sarah, and Gabby simply weren't there anymore.