The Middle of the Garden
Written by Mark MacDicken ©2009 Cross Current Ministries
Characters: SERPENT, performed as a puppet on a tree branch; EVE, an innocent young woman who happens to be naked.
Setting: A large fruit tree in the middle of The Garden of Eden, at the Dawn of Humanity. There are some shrubs around a little lower than shoulder height to Eve, behind which she stands. As the lights come up, SERPENT is sitting on a branch alone.
SERPENT: (To self) Yeah, this will work. I’m lovin’ the scaly skin, makes me feel… slinky! (Looks around garden, speaks up to God) Beautiful garden! Nice work, Big Guy! Too bad the cost of admission is about to be raised to an unaffordable rate. Heh heh! Ground looks a little unwelcoming… all those rocks and twigs. Sure glad I don’t have to crawl around down there like those poor little earth worms! A guy’s head could get crushed under the foot of one of those precious creatures You made in Your own image. But not if I struck first, of course! Heh heh! Yes, I’m perfectly comfortable up in this lovely tree. This is the tree, isn’t it? The Forbidden Fruit? Big Guy, seriously, You had to know You were bating a hook for these clones of Yours! Free will, right! Thanks for opening the door for me! Heh heh! (Sees EVE approaching) Ah, and here comes our first contestant, a homemaker, naturalist, and outdoorswoman from Eden, please welcome EVE!
EVE: Hello, um… aren’t you the one Adam called “Serpent”?
SERPENT: Sure. I have many names, but you can call me “Serpent”. And may I call you Eve?
EVE: I guess.
SERPENT: Great! What time should I call you?
EVE: (Pause) Is that a joke?
SERPENT: Ahem. Tough crowd. So Eve… where is Adam?
EVE: Oh, he’s coming. He always hesitates a little when we come around here. Something about a “co-man-mint”, or something like that.
SERPENT: Well… ahem… welcome to the middle of the garden, Eve. May I ask you a question?
Written by Mark MacDicken ©2009 Cross Current Ministries
Characters: SERPENT, performed as a puppet on a tree branch; EVE, an innocent young woman who happens to be naked.
Setting: A large fruit tree in the middle of The Garden of Eden, at the Dawn of Humanity. There are some shrubs around a little lower than shoulder height to Eve, behind which she stands. As the lights come up, SERPENT is sitting on a branch alone.
SERPENT: (To self) Yeah, this will work. I’m lovin’ the scaly skin, makes me feel… slinky! (Looks around garden, speaks up to God) Beautiful garden! Nice work, Big Guy! Too bad the cost of admission is about to be raised to an unaffordable rate. Heh heh! Ground looks a little unwelcoming… all those rocks and twigs. Sure glad I don’t have to crawl around down there like those poor little earth worms! A guy’s head could get crushed under the foot of one of those precious creatures You made in Your own image. But not if I struck first, of course! Heh heh! Yes, I’m perfectly comfortable up in this lovely tree. This is the tree, isn’t it? The Forbidden Fruit? Big Guy, seriously, You had to know You were bating a hook for these clones of Yours! Free will, right! Thanks for opening the door for me! Heh heh! (Sees EVE approaching) Ah, and here comes our first contestant, a homemaker, naturalist, and outdoorswoman from Eden, please welcome EVE!
EVE: Hello, um… aren’t you the one Adam called “Serpent”?
SERPENT: Sure. I have many names, but you can call me “Serpent”. And may I call you Eve?
EVE: I guess.
SERPENT: Great! What time should I call you?
EVE: (Pause) Is that a joke?
SERPENT: Ahem. Tough crowd. So Eve… where is Adam?
EVE: Oh, he’s coming. He always hesitates a little when we come around here. Something about a “co-man-mint”, or something like that.
SERPENT: Well… ahem… welcome to the middle of the garden, Eve. May I ask you a question?
EVE: OK. I don’t know if I’ll have an answer. To tell you the truth, I don’t have a lot of knowledge yet.
SERPENT: Well, let’s see if we can do something about that! Now, the Big Guy, I mean God, did he tell you some silly nonsense about not eating from the trees in the garden?
EVE: Oh! Yeah! That was it! The “co-man-mint” was about eating from the trees! God said “don’t”.
SERPENT: Seriously? He said, “Don’t eat from any tree in the whole garden”?
EVE: Well, now, wait a minute. That’s not quite right. He said we can eat fruit from the trees, just not from the one in the middle of the garden. (ominously) He said, “Touch it and you’ll die!” It gave me chills!
SERPENT: Standing around naked outside will do that, too.
EVE: What?
SERPENT: Oh, nothing. But relax! You are definitely not gonna die by eating from this tree. God’s just trying to scare you, cause He knows that when you eat this fruit your eyes will be opened and you will be as smart as Him. He doesn’t want you to know all the stuff he knows. He thinks you couldn’t handle it.
EVE: What kind of stuff?
SERPENT: Well, let’s see if we can do something about that! Now, the Big Guy, I mean God, did he tell you some silly nonsense about not eating from the trees in the garden?
EVE: Oh! Yeah! That was it! The “co-man-mint” was about eating from the trees! God said “don’t”.
SERPENT: Seriously? He said, “Don’t eat from any tree in the whole garden”?
EVE: Well, now, wait a minute. That’s not quite right. He said we can eat fruit from the trees, just not from the one in the middle of the garden. (ominously) He said, “Touch it and you’ll die!” It gave me chills!
SERPENT: Standing around naked outside will do that, too.
EVE: What?
SERPENT: Oh, nothing. But relax! You are definitely not gonna die by eating from this tree. God’s just trying to scare you, cause He knows that when you eat this fruit your eyes will be opened and you will be as smart as Him. He doesn’t want you to know all the stuff he knows. He thinks you couldn’t handle it.
EVE: What kind of stuff?
SERPENT: Oh, high-concept stuff, like good and evil.
EVE: What are “good” and “evil”?
SERPENT: Well, now if I tell you, you’d know without tasting the fruit. That’s a bonus, trust me, it’s delicious!
EVE: So you’ve eaten it and that’s how you know?
SERPENT: Honey, I don’t have to eat it. Me and the Big Guy are tight. He taught me everything He knows. Without the fruit.
EVE: Wow. I guess I can trust you, then.
SERPENT: Hey, if you can’t trust the Serpent, who you gonna trust?
EVE: But God’s the one who made everything, right? And He’s only given us that one rule. And Adam wouldn’t…
SERPENT: Yeah, but you’re a smart lady, you can make up your own mind. Sisters are doin’ it for themselves!
EVE: What are sisters?
SERPENT: Never mind. I’m getting ahead of myself.
EVE: That fruit is awfully pretty, it looks like it would taste good. And like I said, I don’t have much in the way of wisdom… and who has time to study, with all the strolling and sunbathing and petting animals to do…? (She picks an apple from the tree and takes a bite.) Mmmm! This is good! Adam, you gotta try this! (She turns and steps behind the tree. Pause.)
SERPENT: Wait for it…
EVE: (Screams from behind the tree.) I’m naked! You’re naked! I can see your… You can see my…! We have no fur!!!
SERPENT: (Chuckling to himself) Yeah, I was gonna say something about that, but I didn’t want to embarrass you… prematurely. Why don’t you sew some fig leaves together and cover up your shame! What do you think this is, some kind of nudist camp? Uh-oh, I think I hear someone coming… (Sarcastically) I wonder who that could be? Well, my work here is done for day one. This is my cue to lose the snakeskin jacket and slither on outta here. Eve, Adam, I’ll catch you on the rebound! (Pause) This could be the start of a beautiful friendship! Heh heh!
EVE: What are “good” and “evil”?
SERPENT: Well, now if I tell you, you’d know without tasting the fruit. That’s a bonus, trust me, it’s delicious!
EVE: So you’ve eaten it and that’s how you know?
SERPENT: Honey, I don’t have to eat it. Me and the Big Guy are tight. He taught me everything He knows. Without the fruit.
EVE: Wow. I guess I can trust you, then.
SERPENT: Hey, if you can’t trust the Serpent, who you gonna trust?
EVE: But God’s the one who made everything, right? And He’s only given us that one rule. And Adam wouldn’t…
SERPENT: Yeah, but you’re a smart lady, you can make up your own mind. Sisters are doin’ it for themselves!
EVE: What are sisters?
SERPENT: Never mind. I’m getting ahead of myself.
EVE: That fruit is awfully pretty, it looks like it would taste good. And like I said, I don’t have much in the way of wisdom… and who has time to study, with all the strolling and sunbathing and petting animals to do…? (She picks an apple from the tree and takes a bite.) Mmmm! This is good! Adam, you gotta try this! (She turns and steps behind the tree. Pause.)
SERPENT: Wait for it…
EVE: (Screams from behind the tree.) I’m naked! You’re naked! I can see your… You can see my…! We have no fur!!!
SERPENT: (Chuckling to himself) Yeah, I was gonna say something about that, but I didn’t want to embarrass you… prematurely. Why don’t you sew some fig leaves together and cover up your shame! What do you think this is, some kind of nudist camp? Uh-oh, I think I hear someone coming… (Sarcastically) I wonder who that could be? Well, my work here is done for day one. This is my cue to lose the snakeskin jacket and slither on outta here. Eve, Adam, I’ll catch you on the rebound! (Pause) This could be the start of a beautiful friendship! Heh heh!
No comments:
Post a Comment