Beyond Common Sense

Eve sat upon the stone looking out across the field to where Adam dug around the plants. She sighed and placed a weary hand upon her swollen abdomen. Fear gripped her heart. She tried not to be afraid. She had seen the animals give birth, but somehow, she knew her time would be different.

“I will greatly multiply your sorrow and your conception; in pain you shall bring forth children.” God’s words haunted her, bringing back the unforgettable memories of that horrid day. She cradled her head in her hands and wept.

“Oh, Father! Why? Why did I listen to him?” she cried.

She often dreamed of their days in the garden. Oh, how wonderful they had been! We were so happy. She closed her eyes and once again saw the beauty of it all, shutting out the tangled, weed- infested ground which stretched before her. She mentally revisited her favorite spots: the refreshing waterfall that tumbled and laughed its way to the sparkling, deep pool they had enjoyed; the fields of wildflowers where they ran with the leopard while eagles soared above; the bower of trees where they lay at night, listening to the cacophony of nighttime songs.

A tear slipped between her fingers and fell to the dusty ground.

She thought back to the day when the serpent had become her friend. He had gotten his tail caught between two rocks and looked so piteous as he tried to wiggle himself free. She and Adam had been walking out into the far end of the garden where the woods were wildly beautiful and alluring.

Adam laughed. “What do we have here?” He bent down to talk to the creature. “Serpent, how did this happen?” he asked, a smile playing on his lips.

The captured creature looked up mournfully. “I’m not sure. I was just walking along the rocks when one of them came loose. The next thing I knew, I was tumbling down from there.” He pointed up above him, “and landed here with this rock on my tail!” Even then, he pulled and hissed but to no avail.

Adam reached for the rock with his strong, capable hands and easily lifted it, freeing its prisoner. The snake held the end of his tail, examining it. Satisfied that it was in one piece, he smiled up at Adam.

“Thank you,” he said with a smile.

“You are welcome, little friend. We were just heading back to the orchard to get a bite to eat before the sun sinks low. Would you like to join us?”

A smile brightened his countenance. “I would be honored!”

Together the three walked and talked, and a friendship was forged. From the first time she saw him, Eve had been mesmerized by the serpent’s beauty. His skin flashed a thousand rainbows with every step he took. For this reason, she called him Flash. The vibrant colors reminded her of the rainbows which shot forth in the water when Adam jumped into the pool near their home.

I should have seen the change in him, Eve thought as she replayed their friendship. Splash

became a regular visitor and often talked with Adam while he tended the garden. He seemed intrigued by the special tree in the center of the grove and would often pause there, regarding it with a look of

amused fascination. As Eve thought about those looks, she wondered why she hadn’t seen the disdain in his eyes; but then, she only knew good before the fall.

It wasn’t the first time that Satan had whispered words to Eve which held double meaning, but her trust in God held true until that day. Adam had turned to go and was some distance away from them when Splash asked the infamous question to Eve. “Has God indeed said, ‘You shall not eat of every tree of the garden’?” Flash had seen how she looked at the tree as well, admiring its beauty, for indeed it was the most beautiful tree in the garden. His voice was questioning but without any detection of the malice that lay deep within his heart.

Eve looked at the serpent, and his beauty seemed to bewitch her. She stared at the tree and said in a voice that held just a hint of questioning. “We may eat the fruit of the trees of the garden; but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God has said,’ You shall not eat it, nor shall you touch

it, lest you die.’” Her voice was mechanical as though she were reciting a catechism which had been taught but not quite accepted or understood.

Satan’s heart pounded within the beautiful creature. He was making headway. Perhaps today was the day he had worked towards—longed for ever since his fall from the splendors of heaven. He

came closer to Eve, looking over his shoulder to see that Adam was not listening. He caught her eye. His look was so intense, Eve found herself drawing closer.

“You will not surely die,” he hissed with subtle urgency as one who knows a secret. “For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” He continued to look deep into her soul, drawing out doubt and watering it with his charisma.

Eve looked at him, then at the tree drawing near to it—nearer than she had ever stepped before.

Its fragrance was luscious and its color inviting. Her mouth watered and she wondered what it would taste like. What would it be like to know the things God knew—to be wise, like God… and Flash?

As though in a trance, she reached for the fruit, Flash standing close to her, dazzling her in the bright afternoon sun. For a moment, she hesitated, but then grasped the fruit and pulled it from its branch. The leaves seemed to shudder as though the tree was holding its breath in agony. She took a bite and saw.

Adam stood in amazement. What had she done? He looked into her eyes and saw something

there that had not been there before. She looked at him, desiring him, walked towards him, and handed him the fruit. A thousand thoughts tumbled through his mind. God had said… the forbidden tree … don’t! Don’t! DON’T… but he did.

A hideous, triumphant laugh rumbled forth from Flash. His whole countenance changed as he puffed himself up and stared at the cursed couple. “Now you know good… AND evil,” he laughed. He wound his way around the forbidden tree, pulling off its fruit and biting into its flesh before throwing it at their feet. He climbed higher and pulled off another and another, tossing them to the ground before he sprang from the tree and disappeared into the forest, his evil laugh echoing through the garden, which shuddered and mourned the day.

Adam and Eve stared at each other, horrified at what they saw. Innocence was gone, and in its place were the seeds of sin: lust, anger, disgust, and so much more. They rushed from the tree wondering how to cover their naked bodies. As Adam pulled leaves from the fig trees and sewed them

together, he thought back to the day he had made a tapestry and a crown for Eve as they had frolicked in the sun. That day he had sown the leaves together in a beautiful, geometric design, adding different colors from various plants to please his wife. Now, he worked feverishly to cover their shame.

He looked at Eve, now covered. His eyes were full of pity. “Oh, what have we done, Eve?” he whispered.

Tears glistened in Eve’s eyes—just one more new experience of knowing good and experiencing evil. “I don’t know, Adam. What will HE say?”

Adam looked at the sky as the sun began to set—the time they always met with their Father, the time they had always looked forward to—a time when they basked in the very presence of their God. As though on cue, they heard a gentle rustling of leaves and then the loving voice of their Father. “Where

are you?” He called.

Fierce terror gripped Adam’s heart. “I…I heard Your voice in the garden, and I was afraid

because…” He hesitated, not wanting to speak the words. “… because I was naked; and I hid myself.”

Then He was there before them, clothed in such brightness that they had to look away. Gone was the joy and warmth of comradery. In a voice so still yet so powerful, He spoke once more. “Who told you that you were naked?” Silence. “Have you eaten from the tree of which I commanded you that you should not eat?”

Oh, how dreadful it was! We had stood with Him before in pure innocence; now we quake at his perfection, shrouded in sin, Eve thought.

The whole story unraveled before their Creator, laced with blame and excuses. Eve’s heart broke as Adam pointed his accusing finger at her and said, “The woman whom You gave to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I ate.” Love lay shattered at their feet. The woman! Not ‘my companion’ or ‘my joy’ or any of the other tender names he had called her!

She could feel His gaze upon her. Guilt forced her to her knees. “What is this you have done?” He asked.

“The serpent deceived me, and I ate.” Eve buried her face in her hands and wept with shame and regret.

As though summoned by God’s mighty hand, Flash crept from behind a tree as God spoke.

“Because you have done this, you are cursed more than all cattle, and more than every beast of the field; on your belly you shall go, and you shall eat dust all the days of your life.”

Adam and Eve looked on in horror as the once glorious creature writhed in pain, losing his limbs and slithering away on his belly.

“I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her Seed; He shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise His heel.”

God came closer to Eve and pronounced the curse she dreaded. She recalled His other words and knew from the conflicts which had come between her and Adam that it was true as well. “Your desire shall be for your husband, and he shall rule over you.”

Adam’s heart raced. Would he live or would God require death for his sinful disobedience? The words of Flash came back to him. You shall not die. Oh, but they had! The beautiful Spirit of God which had dwelt in them was gone—they both felt it from the very first bite of disobedience.

“Because you have heeded the voice of your wife and have eaten from the tree of which I commanded you, saying, ‘You shall not eat of it’: Cursed is the ground for your sake; in toil you shall eat of it all the days of your life. Both thorns and thistles shall bring forth for you, and you shall eat the herb of the field. In the sweat of your face, you shall eat bread till you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken; for dust you are, and to dust you shall return.”

Eve felt Adam’s strong hand on her shoulder and looked up. He bent down and kissed her tear- streaked cheek, looking deep into her eyes. She always felt as though she could catch a glimpse of the Father when she looked into his eyes.

“Are you worried?” he asked.

She only nodded as fresh tears flowed down once more. He shook his head. “Our Father will not forsake us.” “But He has,” she cried.

“No, Eve. He has not forsaken us. Our sin placed that barrier between us, but He is still with us, caring for us. What have we ever needed?” He smiled and gestured to the fields. “Look at our bounty!”

“But you work so hard, and the weeds grow so fast and the thorns tear at your skin.” Adam nodded. “True. I have learned of the consequences of my choice.”

After that terrifying day in the garden, Adam apologized to her for his accusing words. He admitted that his fault in choosing was so much worse than her actions. He had not been deceived. He deliberately chose to go directly against God’s mandate. He reached for her hand and held it while he spoke. “And you fear the unknown of your curse?” he asked tenderly.

She looked down at her body, so disproportioned… and ugly.

As though reading her thoughts, Adam said as he placed his hand on her womb, “This is the fruit of our love not a curse. I don’t know all that will happen, but we must trust Him. He will not forsake us,

Eve.” He looked up into her eyes and smiled, tenderly brushing away the tears. “And you, mother of all the peoples to come, are bone of my bone, flesh of my flesh, my completer—my beautiful completer.”

He pulled her to her feet and held her in his arms. The warm, earthy scent clung to him— something else that was new to her, and she found that she liked it. “God will not forsake us,” she whispered.

The sun was setting in the west, igniting the sky with its golden, rose-colored rays. In the distance, she could see the edge of the garden. Her eyes took in the land, their land. It was not filled

with the majestic splendor of Eden, but it held its own wild beauty. Her children would grow up here and they would teach them about God, about life, about love. It was their home, and she was content. One day they would rejoin their Father in his splendid home, but for now she would choose to find His beauty and presence in all the little things.

*              *              *

The pain was unlike anything Eve could have imagined. Her bleeding time every month, another part of the curse, had warned her of the hand that might squeeze her body in the same way, but it had not prepared her for its intensity. Adam held her, whispered to her, comforted her as much as he could, but this was her time.

And then he was there! The little bundle of humanity slipped from her body into Adam’s hands. He looked at the tiny baby in wonder and then looked up into Eve’s face, speechless. Eve panted as her body worked to rid itself of the home in which their baby had lived for the past nine months. As it burst forth, her mind went back to the garden and the day they were forced out of the only home they had ever known. Like the bloody mess that lay on the ground, she had felt dejected, ugly, and useless. She looked at the blood smears on her child and thought of the first time they had seen blood—the blood of the animal that had been sacrificed to cover their shame.

But just then the baby’s eyes were upon her, looking into her eyes as though he knew she was his mother. Out of all that mess came this precious, little life! “Oh, Adam! He is our son. From all the pain and sorrow and suffering comes this!” She looked up at him, her eyes shining with understanding. Eve brushed her fingers across the tiny cheek and looked into his eyes. “He will help us, and through him we will know God.” She bent low and kissed the little face. “May he never break our hearts; but if he does, perhaps we will begin to understand the pain we caused our Father.”