Rubin

Soon after Ephrayim’s eight birthday Miriam gave birth to a baby boy who they named Rubin.  Dorcas, who was now twelve determined that she would do everything in her power to ensure the survival of little Rubin.  She remembered how much the death of the last baby had affected her mother.  She went to the mothers of her friends to ask their advice and even badgered the physician who had diagnosed Ephrayim to give her advice on how to avoid the illnesses that commonly killed infants.  Much of the advice was contradictory, but Dorcas sorted through it all and came up with some specific ideas that she shared with her mother.  Babies who were taken to market often sickened and died, so she pled with her mother to leave him at home with her or Rahel when she needed to shop.   Also, babies who were kept inside were more likely to become ill, so Dorcas and Rahel spent many hours on their roof with Rubin whenever the weather was fair.  Whether Dorcas’ ideas were sound or perhaps Rubin was simply a healthy, strong baby, he grew fat and contented.

Ephrayim was at first delighted with the new baby and looked forward to having a brother to play with.  As the months went by and his sisters neglected him to care for Rubin, he came to resent the baby.  Seth saw Ephrayim’s discontent and spent more time with him.  There was so much that Ephrayim needed to learn, so this was not wasted time for Seth.  He had decided years ago that even though his older son could not attend school with the other boys his age that his education should not be neglected.  Seth had begun to instruct Ephrayim in the Torah at age five, which was when most boys began their formal schooling.  Since Seth had been a slave, he had not received much education, but he knew the Law as well as basic literacy and math.  Every evening Seth spent time with Ephrayim and gave him an assignment to work on for the next evening.  These were usually exercises that Seth made up himself and involved application of portions of the Law.  He felt that if Ephrayim had something constructive to think about during the day it would ward off loneliness and self-pity.  He also set aside money and at some sacrifice to the family purchased a scroll of a portion of the Torah to teach Ephrayim to read.  It was too cumbersome for Ephrayim to manage on his own, but sometimes his sisters helped him with the scroll and he read aloud to them.  Once Rubin was born Dorcas and Rahel were too busy to unroll the scroll bit by bit for him.  To compensate for this Set built a frame to support the Torah with a portion unrolled that Ephrayim could read and memorize.  Every night Seth would turn the frame away and listen with pride as his elder son recited the portion he had memorized that day.  Ephrayim then explained the passage and its application, in his understanding, to his father.  The two would often spend hours debating the day’s passage and how it applied to the two of them, their family and the Jews as a whole.

The only evening that these lessons were not held was the Sabbath.  After Miriam lit the Sabbath candles, Seth made his way to the temple.  Every week he regretted that he could not take Ephrayim with him.  It was not just the difficulty of transporting the boy that prevented this.  The Law forbid anyone with a disability from entering the temple.  Ephrayim knew this from his studies and never asked to be taken there by his father.  Instead he spent the time while his father was at temple in prayer and meditation.  When Seth returned he repeated the priest’s teaching to Ephrayim and the two spent much of the Sabbath discussing how this new information fit in with Ephrayim’s studies. 

As Rubin grew he was the pet of his sisters and mother and charmed the women of the neighborhood.  He was a handsome little boy and quickly learned to use his looks and charm to get what the wanted from the adults around him.  Sometimes it was a special treat, other times it was a better view of an event or respite from an undesirable chore.  Ephrayim tried often to get Rubin to sit with him and play or talk, but Rubin preferred to be with his sisters if he was indoors, and had no interest in learning the stories of their people that Ephrayim tried to tell him.  He told his older brother that the stories were boring and that it was more fun to play at being a centurion with his friends. 

Rubin started school soon after his fifth birthday but he neither enjoyed it nor distinguished himself in any of the classes.  Seth spoke to him sternly about the need to learn his lessons, but Rubin didn’t listen or care.  It was only when Miriam began to secretly give him treats for satisfactory reports that those reports began to reflect effort and some success.  One evening Seth met one of the teachers in the marketplace and when asked, the teacher shook his head and said that while Rubin obviously had the intelligence to do the work as well as any other student; he only chose to put forth enough effort to do the minimum amount required.  The teacher shrugged and said that he had seen many boys like that, and they usually settled into their trade with no difficulty, and that it didn’t matter as he wasn’t born to be one of the priests. 

Seth walked away from this conversation disturbed.  He felt in his heart that all Jews should learn as much about Yahweh and His law as they could.  Otherwise, their lives were just about getting by and following rules they didn’t understand or care about.  A person like that might start skimping on sacrifices or not following some of the Law, and how else could a Jew draw close to Yahweh if he didn’t follow the Law?  By the time he arrived home, Seth was a very worried man.

Over the next few days Seth considered the problem of Rubin.  He asked in his prayers for guidance, but days passed and he received no answer.  Miriam saw that he was worried about something, but decided that if it concerned her she’d wait for him to say something.  Ephrayim also noticed his father’s distraction and asked what was wrong.  Set considered, and decided to tell the boy of his concern.  When Seth finished Ephrayim nodded.  “I’ve asked him to read with me or listen while I tell him some of the stories you’ve told me, but he just wants to go and play.  He’s always running somewhere and doesn’t like to do things that involve sitting and thinking or listening.  Why don’t you ask one of the priests what you should do? Not all of them look down on our family because we are not Levites or wealthy.”  Seth looked at his older son with respect.  He’d seen straight to the heart of what bothered him.  It wasn’t just that Rubin didn’t care about learning, it was also that the teacher felt it didn’t matter whether he did or not.  Seth resolved to talk to the priests the next time he went to the temple.

On the Sabbath Seth looked at and listened to the priests, trying to decide who to approach.  One seemed very patient and kind, so Seth decided that he would talk to that one.  He explained his worries about his younger son, giving a little background on the rest of the family.  The priest listened carefully and thought for a moment or two.  Finally he replied, “I wish more men thought as you do.  It’s not enough to just follow the Law, we need to understand it.  Since you’re already teaching your older son, it would be good to involve the younger one.  I doubt he’d be interested in the deeper discussions you have with Ephrayim, but perhaps he could sit in on the beginning of each session when you go over the passage and what it means.  Then he could go out and play and you’d still have time to spend just with Ephrayim.”

Seth realized that this would be the best answer to the problem.  It would teach Rubin, build the relationship between the two brothers and still allow him undivided time with Ephrayim.  He thanked the priest for his help and headed home.

Miriam was relieved to see Seth arrive with a smile on his face.  He grabbed her hands and whirled her around the room.  She laughed and asked if he’d worked out whatever had been bothering him.  Still smiling he explained his concerns and the proposed solution.  Miriam blushed and admitted that she’d been rewarding Rubin for good work with special treats.  Seth shook his head, wondering why Rubin couldn’t be the scholar that Ephrayim was.  They agreed that Rubin would not be allowed to play with his friends after dinner until they had their study time. 

With some misgiving Seth explained the plan to Ephrayim.  He was concerned that the boy would be jealous since it would mean less time with Seth, but Ephrayim said he thought it was a very good idea.  They agreed to start the next evening and spent a happy hour or so discussing the teaching Seth had heard that day at the temple. 

Rubin emphatically did not want to spend any part of his evening sitting inside discussing the Torah, but Seth’s word was law in their house.  So, he sat and listened, answering questions only when asked of him directly.  Over the next few weeks he discovered the faster he understood the text the sooner he’d be allowed to go and play.  It was obvious to Seth and Ephrayim that Rubin had a good mind, but was just not interested in the intricacies of the Law, so as soon as he showed understanding of the topic he was allowed to go outside. 

Month by month; year by year Rubin’s understanding of the Law grew, even if his interest did not.  When they completed the first scroll Seth was able to trade it for another and then another.  The two boys learned the Law and the history of their people, Rubin learning the basics and Ephrayim the reasons behind the texts.