“When the dove returned to him in the evening, there in its beak was a freshly plucked olive leaf! Then Noah knew that the water had receded from the earth.” – Gen 8: 11
“…they went out to the Mount of Olives.” – Mk 14:26
Can you imagine the emotional release when Noah saw an olive leaf – a fresh one at that – carried and dropped into his hands? All of the up-and-down, claustrophobic, itching-to-run, homesick feelings would soon run their course. Noah’s lonely prayer, sent out with wings, came back with the taste of olives.
Jesus saw his own olive branch, late in the evening and late in his life. It was fluttering upon the mount, as if held by a heavenly dove. As his own human journey neared its end, what feelings did he have? I wonder if he thought of Noah, with a gleam in his eye: he, too, would soon be home.
Gospel of Mark: Off the Beaten Path 