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The Tough Times
[Note: LIM is short for: Elimelech.] Require: 2 bowls, 2 forks, 2 knives, 2 blankets, & a baby.
IDEAL NUMBER 5: NARRATOR & FAMILY REDEEMER, NAOMI, LIM & NEIGHBOUR & BOAZ, RUTH,
ORPAH & HARVESTER & ELDER. Narrator to say scene numbers.
SCENE 1 ‘The country in crisis’
[TABLE & 2 CHAIRS]
NARRATOR: E-
LIM: [ENTER STAGE & CALL] Naomi, what’s for tea then? [SIT AT TABLE] I’m starving! [PICK UP KNIFE & FORK]
NAOMI: [ENTER STAGE CARRYING 2 BOWLS] Here it is and don’t moan that there isn’t enough!
LIM: [LOOK IN BOWL] What! Is that all! That will take 5 seconds to eat that!
NAOMI: Erm, what did I say?.
LIM: [TASTE A BIT] Agh! That’s disgusting! What is it? [LOOK AT EACH OTHER] No, I shouldn’t ask!
NAOMI: [START EATING] Correct! You shouldn’t ask! You won’t like the answer!
LIM: [SCREW FACE UP] Just tell me: When it was living, did it have 2 legs, 4 legs or lots of legs?
NAOMI: [SCREW FACE UP] Agh this is horrible! [LOOK AT LIM] It had 4 legs!
LIM: Don’t tell me, it had a long tail, pointed nose and was about this long? [20cms]
NAOMI: I’m afraid so!
LIM: [SCREW FACE UP] Haven’t we got any vegetables at all?
NAOMI: No, there’s nothing in the cupboard! [DESPAIR] There’s nothing in the shops! And there’s nothing in the fields! The whole country has run out of food!
LIM: Why hasn’t there been any rain? All last year there was no rain at all!
NAOMI: We can’t go on like this! God must have turned away from us!
LIM: Well, I’m not waiting around here to die. If God has turned his back on us, then we need to go to another country where there is food. We’ll leave Bethlehem early tomorrow morning.
NAOMI: I will pack a few things right now and tell our 2 sons to get ready as well. [EXIT STAGE]
LIM: Don’t pack too much, we’ve got to walk a long way and we’ll be carrying it all on our backs. [EXIT STAGE]
SCENE 2 ‘In a foreign country’
[LIM LYING ON A BED. NAOMI BY HIS SIDE, MOPPING HIS FOREHEAD]
NARRATOR: This family of 4 finally made it to a nearby country where there was plenty of food.
The girls in that country were very beautiful and their 2 sons quickly got married
to Ruth and Or-
RUTH: [ENTER STAGE] How is the patient today?
NAOMI: [SAD] O hello Ruth. He’s not good.
LIM: Agh, it’s real bad! I feel terrible.
ORPAH: [ENTER STAGE] Is he still not getting any better?
NAOMI: O hello Or-
LIM: Agh, the pain is getting worse!
RUTH: We’ve given him herbs to reduce the pain, is there anything else we can give him?
ORPAH: No, we’ve tried everything.
NAOMI: Lim are you asleep? [GENTLY SHAKE HIM]
RUTH: He’s not breathing!
ORPAH: Oh no!
NAOMI: Lim wake up! [GENTLY SHAKE HIM] Don’t leave me here in this country! I need you!
RUTH: [PUT ARM ON NAOMI’S SHOULDER] He’s dead, he can’t hear you.
NAOMI: [CRY] Don’t leave me.
ORPAH: [PUT ARM ON NAOMI’S SHOULDER] We’re here, you’ve got us.
SCENE 3 ‘Where shall we call home?’
[NAOMI, RUTH & ORPAH HUDDLED AROUND A TABLE WITH 3 CHAIRS]
NARRATOR: Ten years went by and they were still living in the same country. But then disaster struck again!
RUTH: [CRYING] Why have our husbands died?
NAOMI: [CRYING] Both of my sons! I’ve lost both of my sons!
ORPAH: [CRYING] We were so happy. Why has this happened?
NAOMI: [SHAKE HEAD] I have heard that my home land has got plenty of food.
RUTH: You could go back.
NAOMI: Yes, I will go back to the place of my birth.
ORPAH: You would feel more at home there.
NAOMI: I do not want to die in this country along with my husband and both of my sons.
RUTH: We will go with you and support you on your journey.
ORPAH: Yes, we can help you.
NAOMI: No, please, you won’t know anybody there. Why should you leave this country, it is your country!
RUTH: I want to be with you. You mean more to me, than my homeland.
NAOMI: No, please, stay here. Both of you, stay here! May God bless you both, because you have shown great kindness to my sons and to me. You will be able to find a husband here.
ORPAH: We want to go with you.
NAOMI: [FORCEFUL] You must stay here. You are still young and you will be able to get married again. But I am far too old to find another husband. The Lord God has given me a very difficult life.
ORPAH: [HUG NAOMI] OK, I will stay here and find myself a husband. You go back to your country.
[EXIT STAGE WAVING GOODBYE]
NAOMI: Look your sister-
RUTH: Don’t urge me to leave you. Where you go, I will go. Where you stay, I will stay. Your people will be my people and your God will be my God.
NAOMI: I can see that I am not going to change your mind. [HUG] Thank you for wanting to stay with me. [BOTH EXIT STAGE]
SCENE 4 ‘An empty house’
[NAOMI’S HOUSE IN BETHLEHEM: TABLE & 3 CHAIRS]
NARRATOR: Naomi and Ruth walked all the way back to Bethlehem, in Israel, back to Naomi’s old house which had stood empty for all those years.
NAOMI: [ENTER STAGE WITH RUTH] Here is my house. It needs a lot of repairs doing to it.
RUTH: Well at least it is a roof over our heads.
NEIGHBOUR: [ENTER STAGE & HUG NAOMI] Naomi it’s good to see you, after all this time! [TURN TO RUTH & SHAKE HANDS] Hi, you must be Ruth, I’ve heard about how helpful you’ve been to Naomi. [TURN TO NAOMI] It is really good to see you Naomi.
NAOMI: Oh, don’t call me Naomi, because that means ‘pleasant’, and I certainly haven’t had a pleasant time in losing my husband and my 2 sons!
NEIGHBOUR: It must have been terrible for you.
NAOMI: So don’t call me ‘Naomi’, call me ‘Mara’ because that means ‘bitter’. The Lord God has made my life very bitter to swallow. I went away with a full family and I have returned broken and empty! I don’t want to be known as ‘Naomi’ because the Lord God has brought trouble upon my life.
NEIGHBOUR: Don’t give up, you don’t know what is in store for you.
NAOMI: [SNORTS] Nothing is in store for me! Look, my field is all overgrown with weeds and it has no crops in it, what are we going to do?
NEIGHBOUR: The barley harvesting has just started, you could go onto those fields and get the grain.
RUTH: I will go and gather the leftover grain and we can bake some bread. I need to find a field where the owner is friendly and doesn’t mind me picking up the grain that the harvesters have left behind.
NAOMI: [BRIGHTENS] Good idea. Yes, you go and do that!
NEIGHBOUR: I hope that you will gather a lot of grain.
SCENE 5 ‘The field of Barley’
[BARLEY FIELD WITH A HARVESTER]
NARRATOR: So Ruth walked away from Naomi’s house. She kept walking until she saw some people harvesting in a field.
RUTH: [ENTER STAGE] Hello, is it alright if I follow on behind your harvesters and pick up any grain that they leave behind.
HARVESTER: Certainly. Aren’t you the foreign girl who has returned with Naomi?
RUTH: Yes I am.
HARVESTER: I have heard good reports about you, you are welcome to stay in this field. [GATHER CROP ON STAGE LEFT]
RUTH: [BOW HEAD] Thank you. [PICK UP MISSED GRAIN HEADS ON STAGE RIGHT]
NARRATOR: So Ruth worked through until the end of the day. Then a man named Boaz came to the field. He owned the field and the harvesters worked for him.
BOAZ: [ENTER STAGE & SPEAK TO HARVESTER] Hello, how’s it going?
HARVESTER: Yes, it’s going well. We should finish this field by the end of the week.
BOAZ: Excellent! Who’s that young lady? [POINT] I haven’t seen her before.
HARVESTER: I expect you have heard about Naomi returning to her house?
BOAZ: [NOD] Oh yes, she has had a hard life.
HARVESTER: Well that is Ruth, Naomi’s daughter-
Ruth asked if she could pick up the missed heads of Barley and she has been here all day.
She only had a very short break in the middle of the day.
BOAZ: [NOD] I did hear that a foreign girl had been very good to Naomi. [THEN TURN TO RUTH] Ruth, you are very welcome to stay in my fields. Please do not go into another farmers field, because you may not be safe with them. You are also welcome to help yourself to any of the drinks.
RUTH: [BOW HEAD] Thank you. [PUZZLED] Why are you so generous to me a foreigner?
BOAZ: [SMILE] I have heard how much you did for your mother-
May the Lord God reward you, because you have chosen him as your God.
RUTH: I thank you for your kindness.
HARVESTER: [SIT DOWN ON STAGE LEFT] Boaz, we are going to have a break now.
BOAZ: [SIT DOWN ON STAGE LEFT] Ruth, come and join us. Eat and drink as much as you like.
RUTH: Well, thank you! [SIT DOWN & EAT WITH THEM]
NARRATOR: As soon as Ruth had finished, she got up and continued to work.
RUTH: [GO TO STAGE RIGHT & WORK]
BOAZ: [SPEAK TO HARVESTER] Can you make sure the workers leave more grain on the ground for Ruth.
NARRATOR: When the evening came, Ruth returned home to Naomi.
SCENE 6 ‘Naomi’s surprise’
[NAOMI & RUTH SEATED AT A TABLE]
NAOMI: [HAPPY] I didn’t expect you to bring back so much grain! Wonderful!
RUTH: My job was made easier by the farmer.
NAOMI: Did you manage to hear what his name was?
RUTH: Oh yeah! I wouldn’t forget a name like his; It was Boaz.
NAOMI: [EXCITED] Boaz! Wow, that’s amazing! God has not deserted us.
RUTH: [PUZZLED] What is so special about Boaz?
NAOMI: He is a very close relative of mine. In fact he is my ‘Family Redeemer’.
RUTH: [PUZZLED] ‘Family Redeemer’? What on earth is that?
NAOMI: Sorry, you don’t know all of my country’s traditions do you? When there is a tragedy in a family and there are no children to carry on the family name, then our law says that a close relative should, if possible, marry into that family. They are called a ‘Family Redeemer’ and the children will have the surname of the man who has died.
RUTH: We have certainly had tragic losses in our family – so much heartbreak.
NAOMI: Yes and our family name will be lost, unless our ‘Family Redeemer’ agrees to marry into our family.
RUTH: [SCHEMING] Emm, Boaz. How very interesting. [SMILE]
NAOMI: [SCHEMING] Yes very interesting. [NOD & SMILE] I think God has already started his plan!
Ruth, I want you to have a good soak in the bath and then put on your best perfume and clothes. Boaz is going to be at his Mill with his workers and they all sleep there on the floor for the night. This is what I want you to do..... [WHISPER IN RUTH’S EAR]
RUTH: [NODDING, WITH BIGGER & BIGGER SMILE] Do you think it will work?
NAOMI: Yes, of course it will! I think God is in on this as well. It’s not just our idea!
SCENE 7 ‘The Mill floor’
[THE MILL. RUTH HIDING. BOAZ & HARVESTER STANDING]
BOAZ: [STRETCHING] Let’s settle down for the night.
HARVESTER: Yeah, it’s been a long day. [LIE DOWN UNDER A BLANKET]
BOAZ: [LIE DOWN UNDER A BLANKET] Well done for getting that field finished. Sleep well.
HARVESTER: Thanks, good night.
NARRATOR: Ruth waited until she could hear all the workers sleeping.
RUTH: [CREEP TO BOAZ & SLIDE UNDER THE BLANKET BY HIS FEET & GO TO SLEEP]
BOAZ: [START TO GET RESTLESS & GROAN. WAKE UP & SIT UP. RUB EYES. SCRATCH HEAD]
[SLEEPY] What’s that? [FEEL BLANKET DOWN BED. SURPRISED] What! Who are you?
HARVESTER: [SLEEP TALKING] What are you on about?
BOAZ: Not you! Go back to sleep!
HARVESTER: [GROAN & TURN OVER]
BOAZ: Who are you? What are you doing?
RUTH: I am Ruth. Did you realise that you are the ‘Family Redeemer’ for Naomi’s family? Please don’t pull the blanket away from me, I am doing no harm. Please let me lie at your feet for the rest of the night.
BOAZ: It is true that I am a ‘Family Redeemer’ but I am not the closest one. I could speak to him tomorrow. I am sorry that I have not thought about this before. You’re a good woman.
You could have chased after the younger men, but here you are not being selfish.
Well done for thinking about Naomi’s family name.
RUTH: Thank you. You too have proved to be a good man.
BOAZ: Thank you. You are welcome to stay there for the rest of the night.
HARVESTER: [GROAN & TURN OVER] What?
BOAZ: Not you! Go back to sleep!
HARVESTER: [GROAN & TURN OVER]
NARRATOR: Early the next morning Ruth got up and went back to Naomi, and told her what had happened. Boaz got up and went to find the closer ‘Family Redeemer’.
SCENE 8 ‘In the city’
[ELDER & FAMILY REDEEMER & BOAZ STANDING]
ELDER: [TALK TO FAMILY REDEEMER] So did you realise that you were first in line to be Naomi’s
‘Family Redeemer’?
FAMILY REDEEMER: [WORRIED] Erm, well, no.
ELDER: So now that you know, what is your answer?
FAMILY REDEEMER: It’s difficult. I’ve got my own family.
ELDER: Naomi has got that field and her house, which you would have to buy, but it is in a very good location. Does that change anything?
FAMILY REDEEMER: I’ve got to think of my own children.
ELDER: The answer is ‘no’ then?
FAMILY REDEEMER: I’m sorry. The answer is ‘no’.
BOAZ: [CHEERFUL] Don’t worry! I was hoping you would say ‘no’! I am the next in line and I rather like Ruth. She is a good, beautiful woman.
ELDER: Agh, do I hear wedding bells?
BOAZ: Yes you soon will.
[ALL EXIT STAGE]
NARRATOR: So the wedding went ahead and later a son was born to them and they named him Obed.
NAOMI: [ENTER STAGE CARRYING A BABY] The Lord God has been so good to me. In my troubles I did turn away from him, but he has been with me through all the bad times and through all the good times. God has turned the terrible situation into a wonderful situation!
THE END