martha

We had the reading about Martha and Mary today. I drifted off into my own little thought bubble...
Martha was probably the older sister, and as the oldest female in the household, the responsibility for caring for others would have largely fallen to her. This still happens today.
It struck me for the first time there is a surprising contradiction between Martha the practical, the organized and the Martha who has to spend all her time getting the food ready while guests are present. Surely if she'd planned to invite Jesus, she'd have had something prepared? So her invitation was probably a spur of the moment thing. I wonder if the conversation went something like this:
M: So, Jesus, would you like to come back to our house and have a bite to eat?
J: That's very kind of you. We'd all love to come...
M (thinks): aaargh! I thought I was just inviting Jesus! It's too embarrassing to try to explain. I'll just have to do the best I can. But what on earth can I give them? I've got an extra 12 mouths to feed and it's not as if I can just nip out to the supermarket or get a takeaway...