In everybody's life there are times of bewliderment and confusion.  I made this sculpture at one of those times in my own life.  As I gradually began to realise there are things that cannot be changed, and the mature thing is when one comes to accept that in our lives there are things which seem impossible for us to face and carry with courage.  Therein is the great test.  We might call it 'having faith and hope'.

...the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a town in Galilee called Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph, of the House of David; and the virgin's name was Mary. He went in and said to her, 'Rejoice, so highly favoured! The Lord is with you.' She was deeply disturbed by these words and asked herself what this greeting could mean, but the angel said to her, 'Mary, do not be afraid; you have won God's favour. Listen! You are to conceive and bear a son, and you must name him Jesus. He will be great and will be called Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his ancestor David; he will rule over the House of Jacob for ever and his reign will have no end.' Mary said to the angel, 'But how can this come about, since I am a virgin?' 'The Holy Spirit will come upon you' the angel answered 'and the power of the Most High will cover you with its shadow. And so the child will be holy and will be called Son of God. Know this too: your kinswoman Elizabeth has, in her old age, herself conceived a son, and she whom people called barren is now in her sixth month, for nothing is impossible to God'. 'I am the handmaid of the Lord,' said Mary 'let what you have said be done to me.' "Fiat!" (Luke 1:26-38)

(This sculpture is the first in the series which includes 'The Greeting', 'Amazing Birth' and 'The Gift'.)