Yashmin and the Ancient Power

"I hope you don't mind my asking, but, who are the pharaohs?"

"The pharaohs? They're the rulers of the land. Gods among men."

"Gods? That's funny. I thought they were just..." Yashmin paused and looked around to make sure no one was listening in, "I thought they were just regular people. You know. Like us."

Yashmin's best friend and fellow flower seller, Meryat, grinned at her. "You're silly, Yashmin."

"But how can a person be a god?" Yashmin continued, looking more confused than ever. "That doesn't make any sense."

Meryat shrugged. She was used to Yashmin's questions, and she knew that it was best to just humour her with an answer as quickly as possible before she started going on about something else entirely. "They were born differently from you and me," she said simply. "Their lives began thousands of years ago when the first pharaoh walked among men." She chuckled lightly at Yashmin's stunned expression. "There's a story about it if you want to hear it."

"A story? About the pharaohs?" Yashmin asked excitedly. This was even better than she had hoped for! Stories were not something that most people could afford these days - not that many people had the time or inclination to read anymore anyway - but Yashmin liked to listen to them whenever someone told them to her. It was a pleasant way to pass the time while standing behind her stall of flowers in the marketplace, especially on those cold winter mornings when there weren't many customers around and all anyone wanted was to get home as quickly as possible. They didn't have much money, so having friends who would tell her stories for free made life worth living again after a long night huddled under blankets in their cold hovels that passed for homes here in Avaris - after all, everyone was poor here, so why should they have better quality blankets than anyone else?

"Sure," Meryat replied with a smile. "This is how it goes... Long ago, there lived a rich merchant who had travelled far and wide across the land of Egypt - seeking out exotic goods and exciting new experiences - until he finally settled down on the shores of Lake Mareotis in Alexandria with his wife, Isis." She smiled at herself as she remembered her mother telling her this story when she was young - it had always been one of her favourites. For some reason today though, it seemed different somehow; more real almost... more real than anything else she had experienced lately because of how hard things were getting for everyone now that trade was going through tough times again thanks to those damn Romans flooding into Egypt from their sea ports in Italy! Her mind wandered back momentarily to where it wanted to be; after all, this wasn't about her own problems anymore - this was about Yashmin's question!

"So what happened next?" Yashmin asked eagerly when Meryat did not continue speaking immediately after telling her where the merchant came from. She had always been a good listener! It wasn't often you found someone like that these days... especially a child! Most children nowadays preferred watching their imaginations run wild in front of their eyes while staring blankly out into space at nothing at all over actually interacting with another human being... even if that other person happened to be talking! Still though; she hadn't let Meryat finish yet!

Meryat laughed lightly at her companion's impatience and shook her head affectionately before continuing her story: "Well," she said quickly before allowing any further interruptions, "this merchant man decided one day that he wanted children of his own so he could leave his fortune behind and carry on his legacy after he died - children who would carry out his name and remember him forever!" She paused for dramatic effect before continuing: "Many years later though after Isis had given birth three times already - only once every few decades by all accounts!" Meryat glanced sideways at Yashmin who looked like she was about to start crying with anticipation, so she quickly carried on speaking without giving away too many details: "One day Isis fell pregnant again and gave birth once more; only this time round it wasn't just another baby boy that came out..." She stopped again and looked down at Yashmin who stared straight up at her expectantly, waiting on baited breath for what came next: "...but instead a whole bunch of babies!" She finished triumphantly as the grin reached from ear to ear on Yashmin's face grew even wider than before; making it seem like it might stretch right off of its face altogether!