The next seven days provide great
entertainment for the hecklers. There is
a steady stream of animals, some in sets of two, some in sets of seven. What can the crazy man be thinking? The mob grows bigger as word spreads. The insults grow louder, and the violence
grows stronger. Rocks are thrown at the
ark and at the animals. Several attempts
are made to rile up the creatures, and many times someone tries to shoot an
arrow into the line of procession to take one out. Somehow, though, every attempt is
thwarted. Several of the young boys try
to run into the area around the ark to cause a problem. But for some reason, they cannot come near
the contraption. Something stops them,
though they cannot say what. It is as if
an invisible wall shields the ark and the work of the family. So the mob contents itself with taunts,
jeers, and mockery.
By
the seventh day, the entire village has gathered. It is rumored that the family will be going
into the ark for good – a sight no one wants to miss! Was this crazy family really going to lock
itself in that monstrosity with all those animals? The smell alone would kill them in a few
days! This is too much. The entire village is laughing at this poor,
pathetic band of self-proclaimed “righteous ones.” All of mankind has turned out to watch the
craziest family line in existence kill itself in this, the crowning act of their
insanity.
Finally,
the last of the animals are taken into the ark.
The women come outside to take one more look around. They look to the crowd and see many old
friends and family members, now turned enemies, laughing raucously at
them. In tears, they turn back and go
into the ark for the last time. Then the
young men go in, each one determined not to give the mob the satisfaction of
even one glance. Ham, however, loses his
resolve for a moment and flings one last fierce glare back at the crowd. The villagers roar with pleasure. Ham turns back around, disgusted with both
himself and the mockers, and follows his brothers into the ark.
Finally
only Noah is left outside the ark. He
stands alone outside the door, looking upon the crowd with grief and pity in
his eyes. The mob yells and throws
things at him, but still he stands, simply staring. His lips move as if he is talking to
Someone. With a sigh, he finally turns
around and walks through the door of the ark, the last righteous man to see the
earth as it is.
As
the crowd stands laughing uproariously, a gust of wind like none they have ever
experienced sweeps through them. Some
are physically knocked over, other simply cry out in surprise. No one has felt such a wind before. The wind sweeps through mankind straight
towards the door of the ark, and with a fierce bang that resounds in the ears
of every man, woman and child, the door swings shut.
The
crowd goes silent for a moment. No one
is certain what to do. Then, slowly,
jokes began to be made, and nervous laughter begins to rise again. But even as they begin to recover from this
phenomenon, the sky begins to darken as it never has before. Clouds begin to gather together in massive,
menacing walls. The ground begins to
shake, and someone shrieks as they see a trickle of water spring up from the
ground. A terror begins to grip the mob
as everyone senses that something is happening.
Mothers grab their children, and men start looking up and pointing into
the sky. As mankind stands in horror, a
single raindrop falls from the sky to the ground. It is soon joined by another, then another
and another, until finally, the walls of clouds begin to break open into
torrents of raindrops.
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