Things have already been strange. Very strange. Ever since Moses returned to his hometown in Egypt from his adopted desert home, unbelievable events have taken place. For one thing the Nile turned from water to blood for awhile. No, it wasn’t some weird algae thing. It was blood. You don’t believe me? Ask anyone. The stench was terrible and, of course, no one – not even the animals – could drink from it. Then frogs. Frogs! Really! They were all over the place. They’re slippery when you step on them. Did you know that? Not after they’re dead and dried up under the sun. No. When they’re alive and hopping all over the place and you can’t walk anywhere without stepping on them. I won’t even talk about the gnats that flew up our noses. But we at least got a reprieve from the flies – swarms of them – that were all over the place in Egypt. It was the same with the plague on the livestock. What a loss! Oh, not in Goshen. No, we Israelites were prevented that trouble here. And the boils, hail, locusts, and darkness. I kid you not. I almost, almost, began to feel sorry for the people who had enslaved us for hundreds of years – until I remembered how we were treated by them.

Now this. Moses and Aaron got us all together and said we’re supposed to take a year-old male lamb without any defects into our homes for two weeks. We’re supposed to make sure there are enough lambs to feed every family member. Then – slaughter! Yes. Just when we were starting to like the little thing. My brother even named it. He eats out of my hand, you know; his little tongue licking every last bit. But we can’t make excuses. He has to be slaughtered at twilight. Then my parents are supposed to take some of his blood and smear it on the sides and tops of the door frame. Every family in this town is supposed to do it. We won’t be the only ones crying over our little lamb.

We wonder what will happen at midnight, and everyone in the neighborhood has their own idea. But we all agree the Egyptians won’t do this. Oh! What if we can hear the wailing clear over here when every Egyptian household loses their firstborn: the Egyptians in prison clear up to the Egyptians in the palace. Horror! And Moses says be ready. After everything else that’s happened since he returned, we will do what he says. Don’t take time to let your bread rise. Eat lamb roasted over fire, along with bitter herbs and the bread that didn’t have time to rise. Pack a go bag because the Pharaoh will call for Moses and tell him he will finally grant his request to let us out of slavery. But we must hurry, hurry, hurry! Grab what we can and go! Go fast! And if some Egyptians give us some of their stuff to make us leave, well I won’t stop them. Plunder can be done in a variety of ways, can it not?

It’s twilight. Oh! The lamb! The bleating! The blood spatter! We cry, but we do what we’re told. We follow the instructions. Death will pass because of the lamb’s blood. We shut the door.

Story prompt: Exodus 12; Photo by Sides Imagery from Pexels