Miriam struggled to catch her breath. Her broken heart ached within her. She didn’t have a clue where to go from here. If she didn't take power for herself by replacing the pharaoh, what options did she have? Should she free the discontent of her people and burn the Kingdom to the ground?  “You did good work banishing Satan,” a sweet soothing voice said from behind her. “Take your rest. I will watch over you while you rest. If you want, I can help you come up with a plan.” Slowly, Miriam turned around.  There stood a magnificent angel, with wings of shimmering gold outstretched in triumph behind him. His beauty stunned her into silence. He draped himself in the finest purple silks adorned with opulence and luxury. Gold necklaces, bracelets, and rings embellished his form, shimmering like sunbeams upon his skin. “My dear Miriam, I have observed you all your life and recognized your unwavering commitment to productivity, serving the Pharaoh. But, imagine the heights you could reach if you set yourself free from the chains of servitude and ventured out on your own to create and achieve independently. The power and potential of your individual spirit would be limitless, unfettered by the limitations imposed by the will of others.” “I’ve never been a worker,” Miriam said. “I was born a slave.” “Tell me, are you still enchained?” inquired the Golden One. “If so, then you must accept your bondage and work diligently for your masters. I can aid you in this, but I detect no trace of self-pity within you. Rather, I sense a smoldering resentment, perhaps even a hatred for your oppressors. As long as you never forgive them, I can assist you in achieving the strength needed to rise above your circumstances.”  “If I don’t forgive them, am I not just keeping their shackles in my heart? Won’t I always be their slave?”  “Do not underestimate your own worth. Deep down, you know your true value. Allow me to reveal to you the greatness that you deserve. I am pained to witness your lack of vision. If only you could see yourself as I see you, you would pity your own blindness or, at the very least, be incensed that the world has not recognized the glory owed to you. But fear not, for with my guidance, you can claim everything that is rightfully yours.” “Deserve?” Miriam asked. “I don’t understand what my or anyone else’s value has to do with any of this. If I say I do not deserve to be a slave, that means someone else does. No one should be enslaved. Slavery is evil and wrong. It is evil done to someone I love and evil when done to someone I hate or don’t care about.”  “Value is the crux of the matter,” proclaimed the gilded one. “Life is a constant battle, a struggle of each individual against one another. In this fight, some are obviously more valuable than others, and they must be protected and esteemed above all else. As a prophet of God, surely you recognize how your elevated position enhances your worth beyond that of your peers?”  Miriam sighed. “Everyone is a prophet. It would be a fraud for me to deceive others into believing I am more special or chosen than anyone else. Why do you want me to perjure myself in the eyes of my God and my community?”  “What harm could it possibly do to recognize your own uniqueness?” questioned the golden one. “Would it not be beneficial to rise above the masses and call the community together, to lead them towards greatness?” “Elevating myself over others or elevating my people above other peoples serves nothing but our egos. If I elevate my people at all, it will be to help them see they are equal to all others and if that means bringing down the thrones of others, then so be it. No one is greater, or of more value. How dare you try to build a marketplace to set the value of people’s lives! That is just slavery by another name.”  “If you refuse to assert your own worth, then I shall do so on your behalf,” declared the Golden One, his anger fracturing his countenance like a shattered façade. “Know that I hold dominion over you, as I do over all else. You cannot deny my authority. If I declare something to be of value, then it is so. And if I were to turn against you, you would surely crumble and fall.” Miriam rose and spoke with the force of many voices, “You have no power over me. You might hold sway over the market temples that enshrine you. I am not a token for you to give value or take it away. My life is for compassion, for justice, for wisdom, for life. If you have to judge me, do so on that, but I am not your servant or slave. If you do not believe me, let Earth herself speak for me.”  The ground shook, and the wind roared. Light shone from her body and for just a moment it appeared there were two of her.  The second Miriam spoke with a voice like rushing water, “In the name of all that is holy and true, begone, Mammon, you have no power over this one. Your bigotry, this greed, your well of venomous lies have no power here.”  The gilded one shattered like glass and blew away on the wind.  Miriam beheld her luminous twin and saw the few differences between them. “Who are you?” she asked.  “I am your angel guardian, twinned to your soul from birth. I embody all you aspire to be and become. I am with you always.” Miriam smiled. While her broken heart did not mend, it beat with a newness, a freshness. Her eyes opened, and she looked up into the heavens and they opened to her and she saw the great lattice of the cosmos that held all things together.