Fritz von Uhde was a German painter who lived between 1848 and 1911.
This particular painting belongs to his religious period and he painted it in oil on canvas in 1890. Originally it was titled Transition to Bethlehem’ but it was later come to be known as The Difficult Journey. It is about the journey of Joseph and Mary to Bethlehem for the Census. It depicts something of the difficulties they had in bringing Jesus into the world.
Ever since I came across it, I have felt a draw to it, particularly when approaching the Christmas season. Last December I wrote about this in the Blog and I have come back to it again this year. If you are looking for more information on the artist, please look at my Blog entry for Christmas Eve 2022.
As then, I have reflected on the scene Von Uhde painted and offer a different reflection / poem.
A winter journey.
It was a difficult journey.
She, carrying her pregnancy, leaning on him.
He, with protective arm, enfolding her.
Two needy people, both exhausted, longing for rest.
There is no welcome here.
Villagers hide in their cottages,
seeking heat and shelter from bitter wind.
They are unaware of their visitors
traipsing along mud-crowned lane.
Had they opened their doors
what might they have made of the two young people
seeking a respite from their weary way?
Yet the couple must travel on, sustained by love,
he for her, she for him,
the child already alive and eager within her.
All loved by He who loves all.
Shuffling along the track, they pass unnoticed,
to another place of uncertain welcome,
where, in an outbuilding,
strange things were destined to happen.
But of all this, the villagers were none-the-wiser.
Not then.
One day, in the future,
they would hear the fuller story.
The womb-enclosed child, now a grown man,
would send signs of his presence.
The villagers would recall how they twitched their curtains,
sensing a shadow of blessing pass by on that Winter’s day.
Hearing of what they baby had become,
they would fling open their windows with joy.
“He came amongst us”, they would cry.
“He is with us still!”
[GC . December 23rd 2023]
Mr G's Ponderings 