A New Job
***
After two years had passed, Amir’s father released him from farming the land and allowed him to work in the bakery.
Jacob consulted with Rachel about Amir taking a more prominent role in the bakery. He was getting old and needed to pass his trade knowledge to his son. “Dear, I’ve been thinking of bringing Amir in from the fields and letting him learn the baking trade.”
“I’m surprised you waited this long,” she said.
“To be honest, I’m worried about the threat a few years ago from the Red Scorpion Judge.”
“He was just a fresh young man then. He no longer looks like he did before.”
“Ah, yes. I’m so proud of him. He has grown tall and strong as a Byzantine lion. But he is still a quiet and respectful man. He’s nothing like those gang members running through the city fighting and robbing everyone in the name of Allah.”
“It worries me he will not fight for his property and inheritance should they target us.”
“I worry he will not fight for his life.” Jacob turned away from Rachel to return to his ovens.
Jacob went back to work with slumped shoulders and bowed head. He looked like he carried the world on his shoulders. Jacob and Amir were good men, and Rachel loved them. That someone lay in wait to harm them filled her with anger.
Rachel muttered as she returned to the kitchen to mix more dough for Jacob to bake. “These brigands of Satan will not harm them if I am near.”
Amir was ecstatic when his parents shared their decision with him. He would gladly trade his nose full of sand from the fields for the hot ovens and the smell of fresh baked bread. Jacob and Rachel watched in amusement as Amir made all kinds of promises about being an excellent baker like his father.
“…And your mother?” Rachel reminded her son with a hug. Jacob’s stooped stature straightened as the dark wrinkles on his face disappeared behind a broad smile.
For another year, Amir shadowed his father through all the tasks of taking raw grain and turning it into fresh bread, which brought happiness and sustenance to the neighborhood. He showed a particular skill at engaging humbly with his clients. Everyone was eager to visit with him. Bread and conversation became an uplifting part of the neighborhood scene.
The young Baker’s son was always quick to ask the elders about their memories of the old days. He sought their wisdom and became known as a respectful young man with remarkable intelligence. His love of debate with his peers in scripture and his calm manner when critiqued by his schoolteacher earned him respect in the Old City of Isaiah.
Abraham’s bakery became popular for buying bread, sitting, and telling stories. Amir used a sleight of hand to take a poor woman’s money and put it back in her bag with a fresh round of hard-crust bread. When the parents sent children to buy bread, he looked at their clothing and, finding them poor, took only half the money owed and put the rest in the package. Rachel saw what her son did, but she never mentioned that she was aware of his charity. They were making three times the money they did a year ago. Allah had blessed them because her son was growing to be a pious man.
Hyperion Sky 
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