Step 15
The early morning sun gently pushed back the night, stars slowly giving way to the greater light of the day. Alter gently shook Demetrius’ shoulder, “Come, Demetrius. It’s time to get up and move the sheep to the fold at Bethlehem.”
Demetrius groaned and sat up, stretching and rubbing the sleep from his eyes. “Too bad we can’t stay here longer. I like this place. It’s quiet.”
“Yes,” Alter agreed, “But, unlike the sheep, we can’t eat grass and we’re almost out of human fodder.”
Demetrius laughed quietly, “Well then, I guess we’d better get going. Let’s see what we have to eat.” He reached for the worn leather satchel and started rummaging through it. “Well, here’s some bread, a bit of cheese, and what’s left of a packet of figs.”
“We can eat along the way. The earlier we leave, the sooner we get there, and the more time we will have to rest,” Alter said, extending a hand to help Demetrius up. Soon the flock of sheep, led by the two shepherds moved slowly across the Judean hills in the cold morning.
Demetrius watched Alter as he strode along, choosing his steps carefully, not wasting any energy. “How do you do it, Alter?”
“Do what?”
“Remain so pleasant and serve so well.”
“Oh, I don’t know that I serve so well.”
“You treat these sheep as if they were your own,” Demetrius said.
Alter paused in his walk, staring off into the distance waiting for a long time before speaking, “Well, I have a different understanding of ownership.”
“What do you mean,” asked a bemused Demetrius?
“It’s hard to explain, but I believe that Adonai owns it all. We are merely stewards of those things that He sends our way, including our lives. I treat the sheep as He would.”
“But Enosh owns them.”
“No, he is only a steward just like us,” returned Alter, “Only a temporary guardian of those possessions that the Lord sends him.”
“So, what does that make us, possessions or stewards?”
“Perhaps both,” smiled Alter, “Perhaps both.”
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