Negev
Abraham and his family left Canaan for Egypt after severe famine hit the land. Subsequently, they are banished from Egypt and end up in the Negev desert which has harsh weather. Ishmael narrates the experience when they are sent into the wilderness with his mother:
“Beersheba’s wild goats, wild sheep, and boar remind me that even her wilderness is kinder than the Negev beyond. All sandstone sculpture, a dance of naked mountains with occasional crags where wise Bedouins hide, the Negev boasts the bones of luckless travelers whose waterskins ran dry. Will Mother and I even reach this desert’s doorway?”
Temporary Love
Sarah’s inability to have a child forces her to let Abraham have a son with their servant Hagar. As such, she craves to be a mother when Ishmael is born since she cannot have her own. Ishmael gives a glimpse into the dynamic between him and Sarah who treated her like a son before Isaac:
“I was only two or three when I toddled up to her, in love with all the world and wholly oblivious to rocks in my path. I fell face-first and let fall tears of embarrassment by the time she rescued me from the dirt. “Sweet one, come here,” she said, her smile like sunshine. She set me on her knee and bounced me there, humming a rhythm that wiped away my tears. Then my mother appeared. Sarah choked on song, scowled, set me roughly on the ground, and left me there wondering why.”
Promised Land
God instructed Abraham to leave his home country and head for the Promised Land which he would search for his entire life. His mission in life was to fulfill God’s wish to ensure his descendants multiply in the sacred land. The imagery of leaving Mamre once again to find the land which only Abraham will know is in the statement:
“We wave good-bye to the ancient oaks of Mamre and head for Gerar, away from the smoldering ashes of Sodom and Gomorrah. We are a roving city of hooves and feet— sheep, cattle, donkeys, camels, and sorry souls already anxious to pitch tent again. Where is Father leading us? How deep into the Promised Land must we travel? I stick to what I know: I load the donkeys with waterskins and cooking pots. Strap tents and sleeping mats in place. I grab a donkey’s reins and fall in with the caravan.”
It’s a Good Sell
After his father leaves them for another woman, Sam’s mother has to become the only breadwinner. Therefore, Sam has to assume the role of cooking meals because of her busy schedule. Though her mother claims her busyness is due to money issues he is aware it is a means to distract herself:
“I brown some ground beef, crack open a jar of spaghetti sauce, and toss pasta in a pot to boil. Making dinner is my gig, now. Mom spends the week chained to an eight-hour shift shuffling file folders. Then, before hoofing home, she clocks in at the library for a quick computer class. She’s on the fast track to make a decent living in Dad’s absence. “It’s all about the money,” she keeps telling me. “The way you’re growing, boy, you’re about to eat both of us out of house and home.”
