“Crunch—”
The small door that enclosed the sheep slowly opened.
"Father, Mother, I'm leaving!"
At this time, the twelve-year-old Elisha had already driven his father's flock out of the village.
His name was given to him by the only priest in the village.
Meaning, God is salvation.
As for Elisha, he was now walking barefoot on the dewy grass.
Those rough little feet had long been accustomed to the pain of gravel and thorns.
The sheepskin water bag around his waist swayed gently with his steps, filled with water and wheat cakes that his mother had prepared for him before dawn.
"Go ahead, you lazy fellows!"
Elisha tapped the lamb that lagged behind with his shepherd's staff, and the flock just huddled together with a "click", and then slowly moved following the leading sheep.
When Elisha looked at the green grass, he felt very happy.
"After the heavy rain, the grass is growing faster and faster!"
"Ah—it's just that after a rainstorm, the weather always gets very hot."
Elisha spoke to himself.
About half a month ago, there were continuous heavy rains here.
Elisha heard that many places seemed to have suffered floods or mudslides as a result of this, but his village was not greatly affected.
Not only that, they also stored a lot of water during that rainstorm.
Compared with previous years, the amount of water accumulated in this rainstorm is almost several times more than in the past.
Even in Elisha's house, all objects that could be used to hold water were used.
Moreover, each piece was filled to the brim.
Elisha's father even dug a large pit near his home, which he said could also store water.
If there is a need for water at home, just take it from the big pit first.
When the water in the big pit is used up, the water stored at home is used.
Because, in the eyes of Elisha's father, this rainstorm was very abnormal.
He was very worried that there would be a severe drought in the coming days.
He had lived for so long, but had never seen such heavy rain.
So, in the morning, after Elisha's mother filled a pot of water for Elisha and gave him some food, young Elisha went out.
Herding sheep is what he does every day.
The flock of sheep also listened to Elisha and never a single sheep was lost.
At this moment, the flock of sheep obediently quickened their pace and moved towards the pasture on the hillside.
In the distance, the outline of Hebron city loomed in the morning mist, like a huge gray stone lying on the hill.
Elisha loved this time the most.
It was as if the whole world was still asleep, but only he and his flock were awake.
Simply put, it made Elisha feel that the world seemed to belong to him alone at this moment.
Then Elisha took a deep breath.
The air was mixed with the bitter aroma of olive leaves and the sweet scent of ripening wheat fields.
In one month it will be the harvest festival.
His father said that this year's ears of wheat are fuller than in previous years.
However, the rainstorm knocked down a lot of wheat ears and drowned many of them.
I am afraid that this year's harvest will be far less than in previous years.
But Elisha was not worried, because no matter what the situation, his father would always provide the family with enough food.
All he could do was herd sheep and, in his spare time, pray to a god.
God.
"Dear God, I am Elisha, the one who tends sheep every day, and a devout believer of yours."
"You know what? My sheep are always hungry and there is less and less grass on the hillside."
"So, I want to thank you, thank you for sending heavy rains, so that the grass grows tall, so that the lambs at home will not bleat with hunger."
"Also, my father has been frowning lately, and my mother has been secretly wiping away tears at night."
"God, I want to ask you to stop them from being so sad."
"I make my home like it used to be, with laughter and hot, delicious food."
"I know you can hear my prayers."
“Because the mother says, you love every child in the city of Hebron as a shepherd loves his sheep.”
"So, I want to ask you to make our lives a little better, even if it's just a little bit..."
"Amen."
Just as he bowed his head to pray, he heard a faint whimpering sound coming from a woods not far away.
Elisha raised his head alertly and tightened his shepherd's staff in his hand.
Because, he guessed, it might be a wolf.
But it could also be a robber.
Last winter, a robber from Jerusalem stole five sheep from his neighbor.
He only knew that the robber seemed to have been a soldier stationed in a distant city of the Hebrew Empire.
The soldier turned robber after he returned to his hometown of Jerusalem and learned that his brother had been killed.
He roamed around several cities around Jerusalem, making a living by looting property and livestock.
The war between the Holy Egyptian and Hebrew Empire armies was intense, so no one cared about the bandits.
But one time, the villagers gathered together and drove him away, and he never came back again.
So, when Elisha heard the strange noise, he just felt a little nervous.
But not afraid.
Because this is his home.
His family, everything he loved, was here.
My dear, there is more to this chapter. Please click on the next page to continue reading. It’s even more exciting later!
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