Young Writers Society

XVI

She did think about that conversation. And about the meaning of Elohim and her life.

Also, she watched Joseph. Sometimes, she would see him praying in a garden. He talked to his God like a friend, but worshipped Him as holy and powerful. Once she heard him praying for her through tears.

She had been happy, but now all she could think of was Elohim.

Is He real? Or are they just fanatical delusions? And, if He is real, does He care about my life? What about Ra? Who am I to say that Ra is not real? Why do people even bother with gods?

She began to tear up. Oni took her hand.

“No, Oni. I am going to the painted garden. Don’t bother me.”

She ran to the garden that held her old home. Closing the big wooden doors behind her, she started to cry as she looked at the inside walls.

Joseph gave me a new life. Joseph. Not His God. If his God was his motivation for loving me, I am thankful. But it is Joseph’s God, the Hebrew God. I will love and obey Joseph, for he first loved me. But I don’t need a God to be happy with Joseph’s love. Maybe someday I’ll think more about this Elohim. But, not now.

That day came sooner than Asenath could have ever expected.

#*#*#*#*#*

“Oni, get the slaves to make sure the windows and doors are all closed. I see a raincloud in the distance.”

After shutting the windows of her bedroom, Asenath went back to work on her paintings in the main room.

The rain began to patter on the roof, and then pour. Thunder boomed. Lightning flashed across the sky.

She loved storms. So inspirational.

Asenath was swept away into the world of her painting. She did not know how long the storm had been going on when a slave ran in.

“My lady.”

“Yes.”

“There is a man at the gate seeking shelter from the storm. Should I let himin?”

“Yes, you know how Zaphenath-paneah is. He insists that we welcome all those in need to our home. Show him to a guest room, get him dry clothes, then bring him here.”

“Yes, my lady.”

If word gets out that we help all needy strangers, there will be more than we can handle! No matter. Right now it is just one man.

She continued painting until she heard a knock on the door. “Come in.”

The slave entered again. “The guest named Donkor is ready to see you.”

Asenath sat down her brush and straightened her wig. “Show him in.”

In a minute, the man entered. He was bent over and walked with a a bone staff. He was frail and thin with no wig to cover his bald head.

Poor man!

Asenath extended her arms in greeting. “You are very welcome her, lord Donkor. I am Asenath the lady of the house. My husband Zaphenath-paneah will be back for the evening meal. Come, sit down.” She pulled out a stool for him.

He mumbled a barely audible “Thank you.”

Not very talkative. He keeps his eyes down. Must be shy. I have to start a conversation.

“This is a nasty storm.”

He grunted.

“How did you get stuck in it?”

“I was lost,” he again mumbled.

“Where are you from?”

“You already know, my lady.”

“I do?”

“Yes.”

“Have we met before?”

“You really don’t know me?”

This is awkward. “No.”

During this time, the man had not even looked at his generous hostess. Suddenly, he threw down his cane, straightened his back, and stood to his full height of six feet.

“Then know me as your brother Amnon!”

Asenath stood still in confusion. “What?’

His olive eyes gleamed. “Yes, it is I, little sister.”

The shock passed over Asenath, and she began to laugh. “Amnon! Amnon!” She threw her arms around him. “How…where…I thought that…”

“Now, now, I will explain all later, but first, is your husband a trustworthy man?”

“Yes, yes! He is the most honest, trustworthy man I have ever met! Why do you ask?”

He leaned towards her and whispered, “I am a wanted man.”

“Amnon! What did you do?”

“Like I said, I will tell you when your husband arrives. You look lovely.”

“Thank you, brother.”

“I was praying that you had not changed much.”

“Many things have happened and I have changed. But, Joseph has been good to me.”

“Joseph? I thought his name was Zaphenath-paneah.”

“His Egyptian name is Zaphenath-paneah, but his Hebrew name is Joseph. When we are alone together, I call him Joseph. And since you and him will be great friends, I’m sure he will let you call him that.”

“How do you know we will be friends?”

“You are so alike.”

The rain had died down. Asenath heard the cantering of a horse.

“Oh! There he is. Get dressed, and in a bit we will have dinner.”

“None of the slaves can know who I am.”

“Alright. Around the slaves, I will call you Donkor. Now, get out.” Asenath winked.

He bent over, grabbed his cane, and pulled a cloth over his head. “Yes, my lady.”

A few moments after he left, Joseph came in and kissed his wife. “My love. How was your day?”

“Eventful.”

“Really? What happened?”

“My brother is here!”

“Your brother?! I thought that you said that he was dead!”

“That’s what I thought. But, he is here now, in disguise. He said that he would explain all when you arrived. I invited him to dinner. Is that all right?”

“Strange. Well, it’s fine. I will be delighted to meet your brother. What is his name again?”

“Call him Donkor around the slaves and Amnon when it is only us.”

“Donkor? Well, if you wish.”

My true love and my dearest brother together! I couldn’t have asked for anything better.

#*#*#*#*#

The dinner was set up in the main hall on a smaller table than normal. The light scent of paint still hung in the air, but it was overpowered by the smells of roasted fowl and spices. Joseph and Asenath were already in the room getting things prepared, for they had given the slaves the evening off.

A man covered by a heavy cloak shuffled in, quickly closed the door behind him, and whispered, “Are we alone?”

Why is he so troubled?

“Don’t worry, my brother. All the slaves went home for the evening, and none other live in the house.”

“Good.” With that, he cast off his cloak and became the noble Amnon once more. Asenath noticed lines of worry around his eyes.

“I am sorry that I have brought this…trouble upon your household, my lord,” Amnon said as he bowed low to Joseph.

Joseph clasped his arm in greeting. “Don’t worry, my friend. It is an honor to have my wife’s brother with us, though they come with many secrets. Let’s eat, then tell us your story.”

Joseph directed Amnon to a couch. He then bowed his head in silence, as he did before each meal. Amnon was shocked, and Asenath blushed.

He should just be normal around my family. Amnon is a priest of Ra. What will he think? What if…they don’t like each other?

Asenath’s fears passed away as the dinner went on. All three laughed and talked together like old friends. The night wore on, and no mysteries were solved.

Finally, after two hours of talking, Joseph sat back and smiled. “This has been an enjoyable night. Now, Amnon, we are ready to hear your tale.”

“I have to first ask you a question.”

“Yes.”

“What did you do before dinner?”

“Sat down?”

“No. You were silent. You didn’t offer the gods thanks.”

“Actually, I did give thanks to my God. Silently, in my heart.”

“Who is your God?”

“My God is named Elohim.”

Amnon jumped up. “Elohim!”

“Yes, Elohim. Do you know Him?”

“Yes, I do.”

“How can this be? Are you a Hebrew? No, of course you aren’t. I thought yu were a priest of Ra. Is this a trick?”

“No, no trick. I will tell you how I came to know Him and why I am now on the run from, from, well, my own father.”

“Father?”

“It’s hard to know where to start. I was a priest of Ra. Since I had just finished schooling, I was a lower priest and was assigned to boring duties. I was told to organize a part of the storage room for priestly scrolls. It was a mess, and I’m not really an organizer. I began to just read many of the scrolls. I came across a scroll relaying the facts of foriegners Abram and Sarai that had come to Egypt close to a hundred years ago.”

“They are my great-grandparents.”

“Really? I’ll quickly retell the story. In that time, the Pharaoh tried to take Abram’s wife for himself. But the God named Elohim brought plagues upon Pharaoh’s house. I thought, ‘This can’t be true. Only Ra has power over the Pharaoh.’ I asked father about it. He agreed that it was true. I was confused and began to search for anything I could find about Elohim. A very old man told me stories he heard from his father about Abram and what he had said. He spoke about Elohim’s greatness, for He created the world, and His mercy, and His love. Of course, I couldn’t believe Him. I was a priest of Ra! Yet, I was intrigued. This God seemed so different from the Egyptian gods. He was love. Ra was cruelty.”

“Exactly!” Joseph suddenly exclaimed.

Asenath smiled understandingly.

Have they both gone mad? Asenath’s heart told her No.

“How did you finally believe?”

“A noble man had been coming to the temple every day, three times a day offering sacrifices. He did everything possible to please Ra, short of becoming a priest. I talked to him one day. He said, ‘My sick son is dying. All day I go around offering my sacrifices to all the gods. They will heal him.”

Ah. A man who could please the gods. He son was healed. The gods could not ignore such devotion.

“One day, the man stormed into the temple and demanded to see the high priest. I listened in. Father came out in his official robes. ‘What do you want?’ father asked. The man answered, ‘What do I want? WHAT DO I WANT? I did everything, everything to please the gods. And my son…my son is dead’.”

“He died!” Asenath exclaimed.

“That was my reaction. However, father was not moved. He told the man that he must not have sacrificed with the right animals or at the right times. The man started screaming, ‘I DID EVERYTHING! Ra is fake! Fake! And so are you!’ I left the room dazed. I could hear him as he continued ranting while he was dragged out of the temple. I came to a painful conclusion. Ra was fake and father knew it.”

Of course, that does make sense.

“What did you do?” Joseph asked. He was totally captivated by the story.

“It’s really late now. Maybe I should finish in the morning.”

“No!” Asenath and Joseph proclaimed in unison.

Amnon laughed. “Alright then. The next day I sat in my room during the morning sacrifices. I really didn’t know what to do. Later on of my friends, Nizam, came to see me. He was a devout priest of Ra. He came to my room and asked me, ‘Friend, you were not at the morning sacrifice. Are you not feeling well?’ ‘No, I’m feeling fine,’ I answered. ‘Then why did you skip the morning sacrifice?’ I decided to be blunt and honest. ‘I have realized that Ra isn’t real.’ ‘What?’ ‘He’s a fake, not a god at all.’ ‘Amnon, you are obviously ill. I will send for the doctor.’ No Nizam. I will not serve a fraud, a cruel imagination of man.’ Nizam was shocked then began to yell. ‘Heresy! Heresy! Help!’ Temple guards appeared, and Nizam ordered them to take me away. They locked me up in the prison under the temple. Father came in, and asked if I would repent of my words. When I refused, he said, ‘You are not my son anymore. May you rot in this cell forever!’”

“Not father! He was greedy and a coward, but not… not like that!”

“It’s truth.”

“But how did you come to believe? And how did you escape?”

“Though it is late, I will continue since I don’t want to leave you hanging. I sat in the dark prison for days, months, years. It had no windows, and when I stretched out my arms, I could touch the walls. It was dismal. All I could do was sit and reflect on my life. I thought much of you, Asenath.”

Prison. Not dead.

“Here is the most important part of my story. One night when I was thinking of Elohim, I heard a voice. It said, ‘Amnon.’ The voice was so powerful, so…so…terrible that I fell on my face and began to weep. Then, it spoke again, ‘Don’t be afraid.’ Then, it spoke with such love, such love! I cannot describe it, but I wasn’t afraid anymore. Then, it said, ‘I am Elohim, Creator of all, the one and only God. Serve me.’ I could not speak, but after He said that, the presence I had felt in the room was gone.”

“Elohim spoke to you!” Joseph cried, eyes wide.

“I do not know why. I am so unworthy. But, He did.”

“This…this is incredible!”

Asenath spoke. “No. This is crazy!”

Amnon sighed. “I can see how you might think that. If it had not happened to me, I would never have believed such a thing.”

“You were obviously delusional!”

“No. I could never have imagined the terror and love of the Voice.”

Joseph did not speak. He sat in awe.

“I must continue. That was the day that I finally believed in Elohim. To pass the time, I began to write poems for Elohim. I can’t sing well, as my sister knows, but I sang the poems anyway. This attracted my guard’s interest. He was the only guard of the prison. Since I was the only prisoner, he sat outside my cell all day. He liked music and asked about my songs. That started a friendship. Slowly, we talked more and more until he would open my cell and we would sit in the corridor together. Once I trusted him, I began to tell him about Elohim. At first, he was scared and skeptical, but after a while, he listened. Years passed. Most everyone probably forgot about me.”

“This is truly amazing!” Joseph exclaimed. “Something similar happened to me! I will tell you about it tomorrow.”

“Really? I will be glad to hear it.”

Asenath yawned loudly.

“How late it grows! I CAN finish in the morning!

“No, I want to hear the rest.”

“Alright… Three nights ago, my guard unlocked my cell. It was past midnight; I was asleep. He had a candle and a cloak. ‘Wake up,’ he said. ‘It is time for you to leave.’ ‘What?’ I said. ‘You are free. Go! Leave by the back gate.’ He cast the cloak around me, gave me the candle, and a little money. ‘May your God Elohim bless you, His innocent servant.’ I thought that I had been set free by father and rejoicing left the temple. That night, I stayed at an inn a free man. The next morning things changed. I was awakened by the sound of a messenger on horseback. I heard him through the walls as he proclaimed in front of the inn, ‘A reward of an hundred silver coins for the man who captures Amnon, a former priest of Ra. He has denounced Ra and murdered another priest.”

“What?”

“Exactly my thoughts. I realized then what had happened. My guard let me go without permission. Now, I was a wanted man. I escaped On and traveled here. When the storm came, I looked for the safety of a house. Elohim’s providence brought me here. I did not know that this was the house of my beloved sister and a child of Elohim.”

“Amazing! Absolutely amazing! My brother! We have so much to talk about!” Joseph cried.

How can this be? But now is not the time for asking questions. It is time to be practical.

“That is great and all, but you are still being searched for.”

“Yes.”

“I got it! Since I am the vizier, I can give you sanctuary in my home. If you claim my protection, only I could give you up and I would not do that.”

“You me to stay with you, my lord?”

“It would be a pleasure.”

“Thank you,” said Amnon with a low bow.

“Yes, thank you!” Asenath agreed.

Joseph took her hand and kissed it. “I was hoping it would please you. Now, it is definitely time for bed.”

Now fate twists things. For me, Asenath, the daughter of the high priest of Ra, to marry a worshipper of a foreign God and my brother to convert as well? Am I the luckiest woman in the world? Or the unluckiest?