Young John

1603-1625

The young man stood nervously in the outer chamber. The days since they set the wedding date had passed so quickly that he had no time to give the matter deep thought. He was ill- prepared for what lie ahead. Mary, his childhood friend, had attended the same parish church school as he had. Then suddenly, years later, their friendship bloomed into a courtship. He was not sure how their relationship took them to this point, but he knew other persons were paving the way for them.

John was a laborer. He had never explored the world beyond Banstead in Surrey County, England. He worked the fields and tended the sheep at the Banstead estate, rarely given time off. Ever since his father died, he had taken on the responsibilities of the breadwinner for the family. "You are fortunate to have a good job," his mother said. "Your father would have been so proud of you." John realized his mother spoke the truth. Since he had to be the man of the family, it was fortunate that the foreman chose him over others wanting work.

Getting married was not the same as getting a job, John realized. He and Mary needed more time, he thought, to explore each other's feelings and to express their hopes for the future. His uncle said John was fortunate to marry a childhood friend, no matter how brief those times had been. "Marrying a friend makes the first years of marriage easier," his uncle assured John. "The childhood memories give you something to talk about while you learn how to become husband and wife."

John's mother claimed that their friendship would blossom into love in the years ahead, just as it had for her and his father. "And do not wait too long to have children," she said with a twinkle in her eye. John knew his mother looked forward to becoming a grandmother.

As encouraging as his two family counsels were, he knew he was unprepared for marriage. He was puzzled over many minute details. Mary had an attendant who accompanied her everywhere. Did she sleep in Mary's bedroom? John knew the attendant prepared Mary for bed and dressed her in the morning. Where did they expect John to sleep? By gosh, he intended to sleep with his wife, but he did not want to show his ignorance of such matters on their first night together. If his father had been alive, they would have had a long talk, just as they had many times during John's childhood.

Maybe no childhood experiences were as huge as marriage, but many times, as a child, John depended upon his father's wise counsel to do the right thing, such as getting John to understand that animals that were born in the wild should be allowed to grow and live in the wild. A smile came to his lips as John recalled the little rabbit that he had found in the woods. It was shivering and appeared to be abandoned. John knew that it would not live long once a hawk spied it, so he carefully carried the little furry thing home. He assured his parents that he could care for it so his father agreed he could keep the baby rabbit until it was older. He showed John how to tie sticks together to make a cage. John bonded with the tiny furry pet immediately; he loved it, played with it, fed it, and slept on a mat beside its cage. During the day, John allowed it to run free in the house to get exercise. It grew rapidly in spite of being away from its family.

One morning, John was jarred awake when someone stumbled over him. "Lands sake," said his mother. "I almost fell when I stumbled over you lying there by the door. I could have broke my leg. From now on, you sleep in the bed with your brothers."

John knew her complaint would reach his father's ears and the decision would be a final one. His mother ruled the house; but when his father was home, she always presented the case to him for his decision. There was no doubt in John's mind that the rabbit would soon be leaving its human home. John pet his friend, talking soothing words to him as he often did. John hated to think of all the dangers awaiting his pet once it was set free, but there was nothing more he could do to prepare it for life in the wild. It had to follow its instincts and be very wary.

Later that day, his father called John aside. He told John that the rabbit needed to live in the woods where it could learn how to survive. He said it had nothing to do with the care John was giving. "Every living thing has a place to live and its way to live," his father explained. "Keeping a rabbit as a pet is robbing him of a chance at happiness out there with its own kind." That was tough to accept; yet John knew that, if the rabbit could talk, it would ask to be returned to the woods.

John carried the cage outside, opened the door, and solemnly said goodbye to his friend. The rabbit looked out at the view beyond the cage. His little nose twitched at the smells of the outdoors. He hopped out, hopped again, standing on his back feet and stretching to get a better look at the green fields ahead. Then suddenly, he took off like a shot toward the woods. John watched for a long time, but he never heard anything that indicated danger, and he never saw the rabbit again. "I wonder if my bunny is okay," John said at dinner that evening.

His mother gave him a stern look across the table, so he let the matter drop. Again the next day, John commented, "I wonder if my bunny is still alive." His father cleared his throat and started discussing the latest tax mandate from the King. John could not stop wondering if the rabbit was doing okay. The following day, just as his mother was assigning the chores that the boys had to do, John interrupted with, "What if he is hungry?"

"That is enough!" John's father said. "I do not want you bringing up the subject of the rabbit again, and I most certainly do not want to hear you interrupting your mother when she is speaking."

However, today as John waited to say his marriage vows, he had a strong urge to run for the woods as his pet had! He was breaking out in a sweat, worrying about the unknowns facing him as he became a family man. He could use some of his father's wise counsel now.

His mother hoped he and Mary would have a baby soon. Mary was such a little thing; John could not imagine her giving birth. He remembered that two of his siblings had died at birth. He never saw them, for he was always removed from the premises when his mother went into labor. He knew it was difficult, and women and babies often died from an infection. Because their lives were so fragile in childbirth, babies among the working class were not baptized until about a year after their birth, when it seemed certain that they were going to live. John hoped that Mary would not get pregnant for a year or so.

Even animals could die at birth. He recalled a mare that lived at the estate where his father worked had died giving birth. He heard the men say that the little colt would not live without mother's milk. When he saw the colt, John knew he had to help her. Cow milk was...