Demetrius' Story, Step 19

Step 19

Alter and Demetrius walked along, leading the sheep toward their fold near Bethlehem. As they walked, they talked quietly.

“Why are you so angry,” Alter asked?

    “I’m a slave, what else does it take,” Demetrius replied.

    “Well, many people are slaves, and most do not harbor such reserves of anger. You, however, contain so much anger that you cannot function effectively. What happened to create so much anger in you?

    Demetrius looked far off on the horizon, running his fingers through his hair, “I don’t know if I can explain.”

    “Well, why don’t you give it a try.”

    “I’m from Thyatira.”

    “Go on.”

    “Well, my parents were cheesemakers. They sold their product in local markets, making a nice living. As taxes increased, they found it hard to make ends meet. Then, one day my sister came down with a fever. My parents spent all they had on finding a cure. Still my sister, Nuria, slowly wasted away and perished in the end, leaving my parents sorrowing and broken. Their debt was so great that they sold me to a passing slave-trader. He took me to Ancyra and sold me to a Sergius Paulos, a Primus Pilus. So that is how I became a slave. My parents sold me to pay off a debt,” said Demetrius. His voice flat and unemotional did not match the anger and pain written on his face. 

    “I’m very sorry,” Alter said. It sounded weak, anemic, but what else was there to say?

    “It’s not your fault,” whispered and anguished Demetrius, “But how could they sell their son? How could they send off their son into such a degrading life as slavery?”

    “I don’t know. I don’t know.”