Unbinding

And as the sun rose, the solid silence of the night would fracture to screams of anguish that began to roll over the city. At first, just one at a distance, and then another joined until, as a chorus, the wails of mothers and fathers, sisters and brothers, reflected off the walls and echoed in the alleys. The firstborns of Egypt were dead.

The cruelty of four centuries, the intractable words of Pharaoh that the slaves would stay, had crushed into the absolute of the Lord, inverted Pharaoh’s threat upon his own, and the children lay dead.

A walk through the town would greet you with the sights of forfeit: a mother holding her child, limp and lifeless, her noises aghast as if her sound could bring life back into her progeny but would not, bodies of older firsts to their family lay where they’d stood in the street, helpless kin over them, unable to make them rise, for the vanguard of generations had been cut down, their breath of life stopped, fastened into the bodies and still, as they had not been passed over.

By afternoon, the moans of loss would hollow in one’s ears, for cries of babies that would never know their oldest sibling joined the rumble of the undertaker’s tasks.

Stolid and numb, Egypt would free Israel, as the captors had played out passed the extent of their imperium any chance of persistence and so broke. Decimated and bereft, the slaveholders' graves well fed, the bondage of generations relented in the empty cribs of Egypt.

In haste, Israel fled, only to be pursued by the anger of Pharaoh, who again pressed passed his power, and his men would drown for his folly.

Israel was freed.

© Copyright April 6, 2023, David August, all rights reserved davidaugust.com

David August is an award-winning actor, acting coach, writer, director, and producer. He plays a role in the movie Dependent’s Day, and after its theatrical run, it’s now out on Amazon. He has appeared on Jimmy Kimmel Live on ABC, on the TV show Ghost Town, and many others. His artwork has been used by multiple writers, filmmakers, theatre practitioners, and others to express visually. Off-screen, he has worked at ad agencies, start-ups, production companies, and major studios, helping them tell stories their customers and clients adore. He has guest lectured at USC’s Marshall School of Business about the Internet.