Enslavement - Enterprise Lost: Joseph Walker Series

By Andre F. Downing

This is the second book in a series which is based upon the life of Joseph as found in the Bible, the book of Genesis, chapters 28-47. It is the continuation of the story where Joseph has been sold into slavery and put into prison, all the while seeking a way out and hoping to be remembered. This book is a creative take on what this story would be like in the twentieth century.

• Language: English
• Publisher: WestBow Press
• Release date: Jun 27, 2022
• ISBN: 9781664262621

Andre F. Downing

Andre Downing has spent 30 years in Information Technology working for both fortune 100 and 500 companies in the Midwest and on the West Coast. Whether contributing to the development of internal web-based applications or leading a team of developers to create state of the art integration between applications, he has provided leadership and continuity in an industry fraught with change. It has always been important to Andre to ensure people are inspired, empowered, and to have the knowledge that would prove to improve delivery, drive strategic change, and develop potential leaders Andre lives with his family in St. Louis, Missouri. His pass time is spending time with his wife of 28 years and children; 6 boys and 3 girls, ages ranging from 7 to 27.

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Copyright © 2022 Andre F. Downing.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means,

graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by

any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the author

except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, names, incidents, organizations, and dialogue

in this novel are either the products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.

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and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

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All Scripture quotations are taken from the King James Version.

ISBN: 978-1-6642-6261-4 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-6642-6263-8 (hc)

ISBN: 978-1-6642-6262-1 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2022906098

WestBow Press rev. date: 06/27/2022

CONTENTS

Preface

Part 1   Surviving Slavery

Chapter 1   Captivity

Chapter 2   Possibilities

Chapter 3   A Worse Thing

Part 2   Strange Circumstances

Chapter 4   Imprisonment

Chapter 5   Improbable Inmates

Chapter 6   Curried Favor

Part 3   Promised Potential

Chapter 7   An Impossible Problem

Chapter 8   A Pattern Recognized

Chapter 9   The Vision Revealed

Chapter 10   Freedom Realized

PREFACE

This is the second installment in the Joseph Walker series. The general idea is based upon the life of Joseph as found in the Bible. This book is a continuation of the first book – Visions – A New Enterprise.

I’ve imagined myself in Joseph’s shoes more often than not. Forever the underdog, I would say to myself. Have you ever felt that way? Far too often, we see people who have made it and wish to be as successful. But I’m learning to look at people who are putting in the effort to be the very best they can be.

2020 was by far the most complicated and scariest time in the lives of everyone across the globe. Over 600,000 people passed due to Corona Virus at the time of this writting. The health care and essential workers were/are the heroes and can never be forgotten. These are the people who put forth more than an extra effort. Let me say it better. These are extraordinary people who worked selflessly and untiringly to ensure the people they served were taken care of to the best of their ability. This experience has forever changed all of us. These are the people that I look up to. These are the people that I’m now aspiring to become more like. Although the world is waiting to return to some sense of normalcy, I am endeavoring to adapt to this new deep and intricate change in our social system in becoming an overall better human being.

Joseph is one of those extraordinary characters. In the pages of this book, you will find an individual who, in his pursuit to stay the same, is forever changed by his circumstances. In his pursuit to hold on to hope in otherwise devastating circumstances, he has found not only maintaining his humanity and integrity is a strength but also a necessity. I hope that you will identify not only with his struggles but with the people that care for him, who are also maintaining their own hold on hope.

Let me encourage you to hold on to hope. If you have lost hope, I trust that you will go on this continued journey with Joseph to maybe become encouraged to find hope again.

Enjoy.

PART 1

SURVIVING SLAVERY

CHAPTER

1

CAPTIVITY

It had been five years since Joseph had been taken from his home in St. Louis, Missouri. He could not relinquish this thought. He couldn’t comprehend how time appeared to have passed so quickly. He had been transferred from one prison camp to the next. The work was the same. He grew weary with each transfer. There was never enough to eat. He could not find a place of comfort to get the rest that he needed. He never seemed to acclimate, and there wasn’t enough time. For as soon as he got accustomed to the prison that he was in, he would be moved to another. He could only find solace in that he hadn’t been moved from this particular camp for what he believed to be 7 or 8 months.

Day and night intermingled together as one big passing event. There were so many times when Joseph just wanted to run, to find some other place to be. It would be so easy to just go, or so he thought. He was barely watched by the guards. He no longer had to wear chains around his hands and feet. He was well-liked by the people he worked with. He had curried favor with some of the vendors that served the compound. He felt he could undoubtedly be smuggled out. Alas, he knew these were pointless thoughts, an effort in futility. There was no actual way for him to escape his captor. If he did escape, he had no place to go and could be caught and would suffer a worse fate.

With each day that passed, Joseph could feel himself getting more muscular from the physical labor, although he recognized he had lost a lot of weight. Before all this happened, he worked out religiously. But there was something different about manual labor that worked out a different set of muscles. Joseph began to perceive his mind had also grown more strategic than it had been prior to this experience. Although he still sought a way of escaping, he decided to make sure he could retain some semblance of conformity to the ways and customs of this place.

His mind drifted towards wishing he was with his crew. What wonders could they perform together? Sarah, Meagan, Jack, and Brian would help him whip things into shape and get these workers to be more efficient and productive. Joseph did not allow himself to linger there for too long. Missing his crew, his family grew more painful with each passing day. He struggled to remember their faces, and this was insult added to injury.

The days seemed to grow longer, while the nights seemed to grow shorter. The stars in the sky at night were much brighter here where the skies were clear of city pollution. Many nights, Joseph would think about what he could have done differently. He longed to talk to Sarah and wondered how she was doing or if she thought of him at all. He wondered if she even knew he had gone missing. He wondered about many things, attempting to affix his mind to anything he could control. It was maddening not knowing if the next day would be his last day alive. He decided he would abandon any hope of returning to the life he once knew. Even if he did return home somehow, would it be the same? Most likely not. It was time to settle in and make the best of a bad situation. There were no words to express how much he missed his father, family, and crew. Joseph knew he could not survive this without focusing on the present. He had to believe that somehow, someway, he would get out of this and back to a life that was pleasant, satisfying, and fulfilling.

Joseph was able to determine he was somewhere west of North Africa, just miles from the Strait of Gibraltar and not too far from Spain. The vendors he dealt with often discussed their travels along this strait. Joseph was careful not to ask too many questions as these vendors were loyal to Omar. He did not want to return to the rock piles where you were paid in food if you engaged in the physical but deadly games. Joseph flashed back to when he first arrived.

•  •  •

Much of this early experience for Joseph was a flurry of being pushed and shoved from one place to another. None of this was