...and so it came to pass that the three wise-men came westward from the four corners across the painted desert and saw the bright neon star, illuminating the sky, high above the Tropicana Hotel and Casino in Laughlin, Nevada
I am not making this up.
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The three wise-men had been locked in a self storage bin in a suburban town east of where the king was born. No one had visited them in nearly a year and cobwebs and dust were already taking over the storage bin. None the less they were released and their first destination was to the city where the King was born of humble origins: Tupelo Mississippi.
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My mother loved Christmas.
She made new Christmas ornaments every year for as long as I can recall. When I was a kid I first remember the three wise-men.
They were made of strips of old rags wheat pasted round quart sized 7-Up, Dr Pepper and Cheerwine bottles and then painted with Byzantine robes with kite string for beards The shinny yellow lid to a Prell shampoo bottle was used as a jewel in one of the crowns. The chest containing the gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh was made from the red plastic hotel from a Monopoly set.
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In the time of king Herod, the Magi came to Jerusalem to ask where the king had been born, for they had seen the star rise which foretold of his coming. Herod called his scribes and astrologers into council and it was concluded that he was born in Bethlehem of Judea.
The three wise men were sent, by Herod with gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh and - most importantly - instructions to return and tell Herod the exact location of his birth.
In short, the three wise men were spies.
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My mother passed in February, and this Thanksgiving Jen and I returned to my hometown of Stone Mountain, Georgia to plant a Dogwood tree in her honor. It has been my first return home since her passing. Enough time has gone by for me to be able to roll up the storage bin door and take back to Oakland a few precious memories of her.
Gold, frankincense, and myrrh.
I decided to look through more of the boxes stacked inside the storage bin in search of more treasures: the vestiges of a life now enshrined in zip-lock ® baggies and neatly folded and stuffed into Tupperware ® containers awaiting their fate to be decided by her heirs.
Afterlife.
As I opened the red and green Tupperware, ® the profusion of child hood memories rose like the dough of my first Chef Boyardee ® Pizza. The memory of my mother turning the red plastic Monopoly piece hotel into a treasure chest and then Elmer’s ® gluing it into the hands of a Dr Pepper ® bottle transforming the mundane into holy works of art, called to me.
The wise-men must join us on our journey.
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When the wise-men found the Holy Family they did indeed present the gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. But more importantly, upon their arrival to Bethlehem on the 12th day of Christmas, (launching the very first Mardi Gras season) the Magi had an epiphany.
Much like the former slave trader, John Newton writing "Amazing Grace" as he turned his slave ship around and set his captive cargo free, the kings had a change of heart. They warned the Holy Family of Herod’s intent to kill the potential threat to his power.
Epiphany.
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Not knowing the Holy Family had been warned, King Herod sent armed forces to kill all of the young children in Bethlehem: The massacre of the innocents.
However the Holy Family had escaped to Memphis, Egypt.
...and so it came to pass that the three kings made their way to Memphis in a 1996 Saturn so they could witness the giant Chrome Pyramid known as the Memphis Convention Center in Memphis, Tennessee.
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The Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr was assassinated at the Loraine Motel in Memphis, Tennessee. The Loraine Motel is now a civil Rights museum.
Frankincense.
B. B. King defined the sound of Memphis' Blues Music now preserved on Beale Street – also known as the B. B. King highway. We’re talkin’ Highway 61. He is from there. He is known as the King of the blues. His music served as an inspiration and the roots for what would become Rock and Roll.
Myrrh.
Elvis Presley, born in Tupelo Mississippi, became the King of Rock and Roll, He came to Memphis for the music. He lived there. His house in Memphis is a museum to a generation. He had more gold records than anyone else. He has arguably been heard by more people than anyone born in this hemisphere.
Gold.
These three kings of Memphis have changed the world by bridging the cultures of black and white. Elvis Presley imbibed the black roots music of B. B. King which made it palatable for white audiences by turning it gold, while Martin Luther King used the power and organization of the church to knock down the Jericho walls of segregation.
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After warning the Holy Family, the Magi did not return to Jerusalem as instructed by Herod, and they chose to live in exile for the remainder of their days.
There are many stories about what happened to them after that day. One story has them passing through the line of Genghis Cohn. Another, that they went to an island off the coast of Wales Ynys Môn - Anglesey where they taught the Druids. Others have them coming to the Western Continents to teach the Hopi. There are many stories.
However, I know for a fact, that the three wismen went from Memphis to Okemah, Oklahoma to visit the home of Woody Guthrie, and to Madrid, New Mexico and up to the four corners, and across the Holy Hopi Land.
As America passed in our rearview, news reports from our multiple wars and subsequent terrorist attacks flashed with the persistent regularity of mile markers and billboards advertising the holiday season.
I think to the slaughter of the innocents.
...and that is how it came to pass that the three wise-men came westward from the four corners (Colorado, Utah, Arizona and New Mexico) across the painted desert and saw the bright neon star illuminating the sky high above The Tropicana Hotel and Casino in Laughlin, Nevada.
This time there was room at the inn.
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When crossing the desert I recommend taking refuge in
a casino – not a manger. If you don’t gamble, it is a cheap way to rest.
In this case,the luxurious Hotel room was only $19.00 and it came with a free buffet.
The Hotel even gave us each a five dollar credit card in which to gamble. Well, I don’t normally do that but under the circumstances... I figured, “What the hell!”
…I placed the quart-sized figurines each on barstools in front of the one armed bandit... I inserted the card... I pulled the handle...
Elvis Presley was singing, “Wise men say” over the Muzac sound-system.
Three Stars rolled round and stopped.
A chorus of Casio keyboards rained from the heavens like a gift.
I won Gold. I won frankincense. I won myrrh...
I WON NINETEEN DOLLARS !!!!
The room was paid for. I removed the card and put the wise men back in their Tupperware container. They will continue their voyage westward into the setting sun - from the land to the east - across Route 66. Home.
We left Oakland on October 25 and have been on the road for 40 days and 40 nights. As we return home tonight -- on the 40th night -- I am grateful to all of those who have helped the weary travelers along the way this holiday season.
May there always be room in the inn.
