Daughter of Jerusalem (19 page)

Lazarus’ illness was also the reason why Martha hadn’t married. She was a pretty girl, small and bright-eyed, with two deep dimples in her cheeks. Lazarus had received offers for her, but she refused to leave him. The two of them were inseparable, and I was grateful for their great kindness to me.

I remained in Bethany for almost a year. After I was able to think clearly enough to focus on my future, I wrote to Julia. She wrote back, telling me first that Marcus had gone back to Rome. This news made me feel safer. The greater distance between us put him at a greater emotional distance as well. I could picture him in Sepphoris, but I couldn’t picture him in Rome.

Julia also gave me encouragement and sound advice. She had once been in my situation, and she had built her own house and lived in it by herself. Couldn’t I do the same?

I knew exactly where I wanted my house to be: on the Sea of Galilee. I had always loved the lake, and it would make me happy to wake every morning to the sight of the sun coming up over those clear blue waters.

Martha and Lazarus tried to persuade me to stay with them. The
very idea of me, a single woman living by myself, horrified them. But I was adamant. I wanted to be alone. I wanted my own house where I could have my own things and do as I pleased. Men had ruled my life for too long. I wanted to be free.

Winter was coming when I journeyed to Galilee in search of a house. Martha and Lazarus accompanied me, as did a builder I hired from Jerusalem. I wanted his opinion before I made a purchase. I could tell he thought I was mad, but he came highly recommended, which was all I cared about.

I didn’t want to go back to Magdala, and Herod Antipas’ new city of Tiberias was too much like Sepphoris, so we looked first in Gennesaret, but I couldn’t find anything that suited me. I didn’t want to live in a Roman city, but neither did I want to live in a small village. I was growing discouraged by the time we reached Capernaum, but it turned out to be just what I had in mind.

Capernaum was the most important town on the lake, a regular stop on the great caravan route that ran from Egypt to Damascus. The busy traffic made it a center of news, business, and commerce. A Roman garrison was posted there, but it was not at all like Sepphoris. It was a sophisticated Jewish town, and I liked it immediately.

As with most of the lake towns, fishing was Capernaum’s chief commercial occupation, but just outside the city lay great fertile fields of wheat and olive groves and vineyards. There were certainly houses for sale but not on the lake. My frustration was rising again when a local man came to our inn and told me about a lake property he had heard was for sale. The house itself was nothing, he said, just a tiny mud brick dwelling, but the land was big enough to accommodate something much larger. The elderly woman who lived there had just died, and her sons, who were farmers, wanted to sell the property.

Lazarus, Martha, and I went immediately to see the scribe who was representing the family. When he learned I was the would-be purchaser, he looked at the plain wool tunic, robe, and veil I was wearing and shook his head regretfully. “I am sorry, madam, but the owners are asking far more than any individual can pay. Someone from the fishing industry will be sure to buy it; in fact I have had several inquiries already. The family wanted to sell the land for years, but their mother refused to give it up. They’re looking to make a small fortune on it now, and they will get it. Property on the lake is like gold in your hand.”

“How much do they want?” I asked.

He looked at Lazarus who looked placidly back and said nothing.

The scribe wearily quoted me a price.

“I’ll pay it,” I said calmly. “I can draw the money from my bank immediately, and the family will have it by the end of the week.”

The scribe looked back at my brother, clearly wondering if I was delusional.

Lazarus said, “My sister is a very rich woman.”

At these words, a canny look came into the scribe’s close-set eyes. “Well then, of course I will present your offer to my clients. They may surprise me, however, and ask for even more.”

“Whatever your clients are paying you to represent them, I will double it—if I get the property,” I said crisply. I had learned more than I realized from Julia over the years.

The canniness was replaced by the gleam of greed. “Certainly, my lady. I’m sure I can convince them to take your offer. It will be in their best interest, after all.”

“Yes, it will,” I said, noticing that I had gone from
madam
to
my lady
once he had learned the depth of my purse.

We went to look at the property, which was unkempt but beautiful. I would knock the house down, of course, and build my own.

Suddenly I was excited. I pictured a house and a large garden. I knew exactly what I wanted. I walked around the property, showing the builder what I envisioned here and there, and he agreed it would be suitable.

I stole away for a moment and stood alone on the rocky beach gazing out across the lake at the hills on the other side, suddenly aware I was looking forward to the future. My life wasn’t over. I would begin a new life here on this beautiful lake where as a girl I had once been so happy.

Jesus of Nazareth

The architectural style I chose for my house combined the Jewish sense of closed family space with the openness I loved about Julia’s house. While the house was being built, I made monthly visits to watch its progress. The workers didn’t quite know how to deal with me. They hadn’t known many women employers. It was an awkward situation for them, and I did my best to be pleasant and encouraging and hoped they would say nice things about me to their wives.

When it was finished, the house was perfect. I hadn’t been able to include an open roof like the one in Julia’s house—it was colder and rainier around the lake than it was in Sepphoris—but I hired an artist from Jerusalem to paint pictures of the lake and the countryside on the walls of a large atrium-style room, and the effect was lovely. I had the traditional Jewish courtyard, with the kitchen and storage rooms. And I planned to plant a garden on the land that ran down to the lake behind the house.

The one thing I didn’t have yet was a library. Aaron had no book collection for me to inherit, so I decided I’d create one of my own. Julia had given me the name of a seller in Rome, so I put together a
list of the works I liked the most and sent it off to him. The room with its cabinets was ready and waiting, and I expected my shipment shortly.

The thought of having my very own books made my heart glow with joy.

I made the move to Capernaum two weeks after Passover. I had always thought spring was the most beautiful season in Galilee, and this year was even more spectacular than I remembered. The hills were blanketed with brilliant flowers, and the shining lake water reflected back the blue of the sky.

The week after I moved in I held a party in the courtyard for the workers and their families. Word had gotten around town about me, so everyone knew I had lived in Sepphoris, and I was fearful they might not come. I took great care to assure the men that all the food would come from a ritually clean Jewish kitchen.

They came, and the party was a success. The men were proud of their work and anxious to show it off to their families. Many of them brought friends. I made certain to speak to everyone, including the children, and by the time the courtyard had emptied, I was exhausted but happy.

I had hired Elisabeth and Jeremiah from Sepphoris to be my live-in servants. They had accepted my offer immediately. I was happy to know that I would have such kind people living in my house in this city I hoped to call my home.

I had always known my position in Capernaum would be uncertain, but every day that passed made it clearer that I was an outsider. The successful party wasn’t a portent of things to come. I received no invitations. When I walked through the marketplace, dressed like an
ordinary housewife in a plain linen tunic and a simple veil, people avoided me. I felt as if the words
Sinner from Sepphoris
were painted on my forehead.

I was feeling lonely and discouraged, afraid that I had made a grave mistake in coming here, when by chance I encountered my cousin Ruth in the marketplace. We met in front of one of the fruit stalls and stared at each other in amazement.

“Mary?”

“Ruth?”

We laughed and hugged, looked at each other, and laughed and hugged some more.

“Don’t tell me you’re the rich lady from Sepphoris everyone is talking about?”

I managed a rueful smile. “I’m afraid I am.”

“It never crossed my mind it could be you. Why haven’t you come to see me?”

I laughed. “How would I know you were living in Capernaum?” She smiled. “True. But I’m so glad to see you!” She shook her head. “You look more beautiful than ever, you wretch.”

“Oh Ruth, how I would love to talk to you. Do you think you might be able to come visit me?”

“Of course I’ll come visit you! I can’t wait to see this house everyone is talking about. How about tomorrow?”

I smiled with my whole heart. “Tomorrow would be fine.”

Seeing Ruth was like touching real earth again. She looked older, but she was still Ruth, and it didn’t take long for us to feel as if we’d been parted for months instead of years.

The first thing I did was show her around the house. She was almost as amazed as I was when first I went to Julia’s.

“It’s so big,” she said.

“Not as big as the house in Magdala.”

“Yes, but the house in Magdala housed two large families. As far as I can see, this house is only for one person—you!”

One of the things I always liked about Ruth was that she spoke her mind. “It may be a bit extravagant,” I admitted, “but I got used to a large house when I lived in Sepphoris.”

“My house looks like a hovel in comparison.”

“I don’t believe that.”

She grinned. “Well, maybe not. But I have a husband and four children.”

“Do I know the man you married?”

“I don’t think so. His name is Nathaniel bar Simon, and he comes from one of the villages outside Capernaum. He owns some large olive groves, so we do well enough.”