Egypt
"Well, I think everyone has shared tonight except the new guy. You have anything you want to say?"
He looked around the circle. He was new here. He just arrived. But he felt like he had to say something, especially now that he'd been singled out.
"Uh, well, hi. My name is Joe, and as he said, I'm the new guy here. And I'm in here because I did the right thing."
Amidst the normal cries of, "Hi, Joe!" there were also snickers.
"Yeah, right, buddy. We're ALL here because we did the right thing!" someone from the back yelled. The group laughed loudly.
"No, really," Joe said. "I tried to do the right thing. And that's what landed me here in this cell. You see, I'm not Egyptian. I'm...well, I'm sort of from Canaan. My great-grandfather moved the family there many years ago, and while we don't really have a permanent home, it's really become the place where my family's roots are."
He looked around the circle. In the darkness, it was sort of hard to make out facial expressions, but since no one stopped him or tried to make any comment, he decided to tell his story.
"You see, I sort of made my brothers angry. Okay, not really sort of. I did. I was a bit arrogant..."
"Did you tell THEM you did the right thing, too?" someone scoffed. Again, there was laughter throughout the room.
"Well, yeah, sort of," Joe said. "You see, I'm my father's favorite..."
The guy next to him laughed and slapped his knee. "I can't imagine why they'd be mad at you!" he said.
Joe turned and looked at him. "No, that isn't the worst of it. I had these dreams, see, that I thought meant I was going to be someone great, and worse than that, I told my brothers and my parents about them. That's what really made my brothers angry. So angry that, one day when I went to check on them at their work site, they beat me up, took off the coat my dad had given me, and threw me in a pit. Luckily, there was no water in the pit, but I doubt they checked that out beforehand."
"When are you getting to the thing you did right?" the group leader asked, checking his sundial.
"I'm getting to that," Joe said. "My brothers sold me as a slave to some distant relatives, and they brought me here. I had no idea where we were going until I saw the pyramids. They're awesome, by the way, and it was a really strange feeling to see them, because I knew where I was but I also knew I would probably never find my way back home."
Another man, one who had been in this prison the longest, spoke up: "I don't know that any of us will ever see home again."
Joe frowned, but kept talking. "I was sold pretty quickly to a man named Potiphar..."
"Captain of the Guard, sir!" someone from the back shouted.
"Yes," Joe said.
"Did you check out his wife?" someone else asked. "She's something, huh?"
"Well, yes," Joe said, "she's something. In fact, that's why I'm here."
"You didn't!"
"No, I didn't!" Joe said quickly. "But she tried to make me. She tried to get me to sleep with her."
"And you turned her down?"
"Twice," Joe said. "But I pretty quickly learned that doing the right thing is no guarantee of anything. She told her husband that I had slept with her, had tried to take advantage of her, and even though it's not true, he still sent me to prison. That's how I ended up here, in this prison, for I don't know how long." Joe paused, then continued. "I'm just trying to trust that, even here, God can still use me."
"God?" the group leader said. "Your God doesn't remember you here. This hole is so deep in the ground that no one, not even a god, can find you here."
"I wouldn't bet on that," Joe said. "You don't know what my God can do."
There was an awkward silence, then the group leaders spoke up. "Well," he said, "our time is up tonight, guys. Everyone back to their cells before the warden comes to check on us. We'll meet again next week." Everyone got up and shuffled off in their own directions. One man, though, stopped Joe.
"I don't know about the rest of the people here," he said, "but I believe you. I hope your God does come through."
"Thanks," Joe said. "That means a lot to me."
"Well," the other man said, "good night, Joe."
"Good night, John-Boy."
He looked around the circle. He was new here. He just arrived. But he felt like he had to say something, especially now that he'd been singled out.
"Uh, well, hi. My name is Joe, and as he said, I'm the new guy here. And I'm in here because I did the right thing."
Amidst the normal cries of, "Hi, Joe!" there were also snickers.
"Yeah, right, buddy. We're ALL here because we did the right thing!" someone from the back yelled. The group laughed loudly.
"No, really," Joe said. "I tried to do the right thing. And that's what landed me here in this cell. You see, I'm not Egyptian. I'm...well, I'm sort of from Canaan. My great-grandfather moved the family there many years ago, and while we don't really have a permanent home, it's really become the place where my family's roots are."
He looked around the circle. In the darkness, it was sort of hard to make out facial expressions, but since no one stopped him or tried to make any comment, he decided to tell his story.
"You see, I sort of made my brothers angry. Okay, not really sort of. I did. I was a bit arrogant..."
"Did you tell THEM you did the right thing, too?" someone scoffed. Again, there was laughter throughout the room.
"Well, yeah, sort of," Joe said. "You see, I'm my father's favorite..."
The guy next to him laughed and slapped his knee. "I can't imagine why they'd be mad at you!" he said.
Joe turned and looked at him. "No, that isn't the worst of it. I had these dreams, see, that I thought meant I was going to be someone great, and worse than that, I told my brothers and my parents about them. That's what really made my brothers angry. So angry that, one day when I went to check on them at their work site, they beat me up, took off the coat my dad had given me, and threw me in a pit. Luckily, there was no water in the pit, but I doubt they checked that out beforehand."
"When are you getting to the thing you did right?" the group leader asked, checking his sundial.
"I'm getting to that," Joe said. "My brothers sold me as a slave to some distant relatives, and they brought me here. I had no idea where we were going until I saw the pyramids. They're awesome, by the way, and it was a really strange feeling to see them, because I knew where I was but I also knew I would probably never find my way back home."
Another man, one who had been in this prison the longest, spoke up: "I don't know that any of us will ever see home again."
Joe frowned, but kept talking. "I was sold pretty quickly to a man named Potiphar..."
"Captain of the Guard, sir!" someone from the back shouted.
"Yes," Joe said.
"Did you check out his wife?" someone else asked. "She's something, huh?"
"Well, yes," Joe said, "she's something. In fact, that's why I'm here."
"You didn't!"
"No, I didn't!" Joe said quickly. "But she tried to make me. She tried to get me to sleep with her."
"And you turned her down?"
"Twice," Joe said. "But I pretty quickly learned that doing the right thing is no guarantee of anything. She told her husband that I had slept with her, had tried to take advantage of her, and even though it's not true, he still sent me to prison. That's how I ended up here, in this prison, for I don't know how long." Joe paused, then continued. "I'm just trying to trust that, even here, God can still use me."
"God?" the group leader said. "Your God doesn't remember you here. This hole is so deep in the ground that no one, not even a god, can find you here."
"I wouldn't bet on that," Joe said. "You don't know what my God can do."
There was an awkward silence, then the group leaders spoke up. "Well," he said, "our time is up tonight, guys. Everyone back to their cells before the warden comes to check on us. We'll meet again next week." Everyone got up and shuffled off in their own directions. One man, though, stopped Joe.
"I don't know about the rest of the people here," he said, "but I believe you. I hope your God does come through."
"Thanks," Joe said. "That means a lot to me."
"Well," the other man said, "good night, Joe."
"Good night, John-Boy."
Comments
Post a Comment