Jotham's Journey Chapter One

Chapter 1 introduces Jotham, a boy pulling a scratchy gray blanket tighter around his shoulders as the sun has dropped and the wind is cold. He is alone, feeling the chill, and hearing a jackal's howl. Jotham, a 10-year-old boy from Jericho, considers himself ready to defend his flock, but he is currently alone with only his tunic, staff, and small wool blanket, which makes him a "very tempting meal for a hungry jackal".

Jotham is upset because his father would not let him go with his older brothers, Jethro, Ephraim, and Elazar, on a journey to the Valley of Hebron to sell sheep to a man named Zadok of Kadesh. The Valley of Hebron is next to the city of Hebron, a city Jotham longed to see because of its marketplace, exotic foods, toys, wells, flags, and music. Jotham insisted on going, but his father told him he was "not yet ready" and must "remain with me, and you will tend to your lambs". In anger, Jotham ran away from his father's tent.

He decided he would not return until his father treated him "like a man". He ate his bread and dried meat, explored the rocks and canyons, and eventually began to feel afraid of what he had done. He heard his father and brothers calling his name but refused to answer, not wanting to apologize or be laughed at.

Jotham spent a cold, sleepless night alone. In the morning, consumed by hunger and fear of punishment, he devised a plan: he would injure his forehead with a rock to make it look like he had been attacked by thieves, throw away his lunch bag and staff, and pretend to be unconscious near the lamb's grazing field so his father would find him and punish him less.

When no one came to find him after he had inflicted the injury, Jotham became angry again, deciding to stay out and make his family worry, believing he could take care of himself. Soon after, the continued howling of the jackal and his hunger led Jotham to change his mind. He decided to go back, ask for forgiveness, take his punishment, and eat.

When he arrived near the camp, he found his father's tents, fire pits, and sheep pens were all gone. He cried, believing his family had left him because they did not care enough. While searching for food near the camp, he walked to the watering hole and noticed a pile of stones.

Near the pile of stones, he saw blood, bits of fur and flesh, and a trail leading into the bushes. On a flat stone at the top of the pile, he saw writing, and he read his name: "Jotham". He realized his family thought he was dead, killed by an animal. Jotham fell to the dirt, screaming for his father, gripped by fear. Finally, he decided he must search for his family until he finds them, wherever they are. As he resolved to search, a jackal howled nearby.