The Upside-Down Palace

The Upside-Down Palace

Long ago, Abraham and Sarah set out on a long journey toward Egypt. The road was difficult. By day, hot air trembled above the ground. By evening, the sky turned violet. At night, the travelers saw so many stars that they seemed more numerous than grains of sand in a hand. Sarah was known for her beauty. But Abraham valued her wisdom and calm spirit even more. She noticed things that others missed and did not rush to conclusions. When they neared the Egyptian border, Abraham became worried. “At court here, people are very interested in anything unusual,” he said. “And we are strangers. I do not want curiosity to make them keep us from our journey.” “We will speak politely and tell as much truth as is safe,” Sarah replied. “And we will remember that fear often invents danger before it arrives.” At the border, guards inspected carts, counted bundles, and asked every traveler many questions. Abraham carried a large chest with clothes, supplies, and things for the road. When the guards saw it, one narrowed his eyes. “What is inside?” “Ordinary travel things,” answered Abraham. “Perhaps grain?” “If needed, I will pay the duty for grain.” “Perhaps spices?” “I will pay the duty for spices too.” The guards looked at one another. “What a strange man. Everyone argues about payment, but you are ready to pay more.” “I only wish to continue without an argument.” But now they were even more curious. They ordered the chest opened and looked through the things. Just then Sarah, who had been speaking with women by a well, came to the gate. For a moment, everyone fell silent. “A guest like this should be reported to the palace,” whispered the chief guard. So an ordinary inspection became a great event. Before long, Abraham and Sarah were invited to see Pharaoh. The palace was enormous. Columns rose high over their heads, floors shone, flowers floated in pools, and servants moved so softly that they seemed to walk on clouds. Pharaoh received the travelers in a great hall. “They say you have come from far away,” he said. “Stay in my palace. You will be more comfortable here than on the road.” “Thank you for your hospitality,” Sarah replied. “But we wish to rest and continue our journey.” Pharaoh was surprised. People rarely refused him. “Why hurry? You will have the finest room, a garden, and servants.” “A fine room is still someone else’s room if a person is not asked whether they wish to live in it,” Sarah said calmly. Pharaoh did not like the answer. “You will remain here until morning,” he decided. “Tomorrow we will speak again.” Sarah was shown to a beautiful room with carved doors. Abraham was given a room in another wing of the palace. “Do not be afraid,” he said before they were led along different corridors. “Morning will bring a decision.” “I am not afraid,” Sarah answered. “I simply dislike doors that are shut without the permission of the person inside.” Night fell over the palace. Then strange things began. First, Pharaoh sat down to supper. He lowered himself into a soft chair, but the chair quietly slid backward. Pharaoh pulled it toward the table. The chair slid away again. “Who is doing that?” he asked angrily. The servants froze. “No one, Majesty.” Pharaoh sat in another chair. It turned sideways. He moved to a third. The third began to turn slowly in circles. “Stop this!” No one moved. Then Pharaoh reached for a cup of grape juice. The cup glided easily across the table and stopped at the other end. When he reached for it again, it slid back. The servants looked down so they would not laugh. “Everyone out!” Pharaoh ordered. As soon as the doors closed, the carpet beneath his feet rolled itself into a tube. Pharaoh stepped over it. The carpet unrolled and rolled itself up on the other side. “What nonsense is this?” The bedroom was stranger still. The pillow he placed under his head appeared at his feet. The blanket slid to the floor. The bed turned a little, so that whenever Pharaoh closed his eyes, the headboard seemed to be where his feet had been a moment before. He went to another room. There the door opened outward instead of inward and gently pushed him back into the hall. Pharaoh climbed a staircase, but after ten steps he found himself on the same landing. “I was certainly walking up!” he exclaimed. The guard promised he had seen exactly the same thing. By midnight, the whole palace was upside down. Jugs rang without wind. Curtains tied themselves into knots. Servants’ sandals exchanged places. The cook put a pot on the right shelf and, a moment later, found it on the left. The chief writer laid a scroll before him three times, and three times the scroll unrolled itself upside down. At last, an old servant said timidly, “Majesty, ever since those travelers were brought to the palace, nothing has stayed in its proper place.” Pharaoh frowned. “Do you think they are doing this?” “I do not know. But perhaps we should ask what they want.” Pharaoh went to Sarah’s room. Strangely, everything there was calm. The lamp burned steadily. The carpet lay flat. A jug rested on the table and did not run away anywhere. Sarah sat by the window. “Have you seen what is happening in my palace?” Pharaoh asked. “I have heard a great deal of rattling.” “My furniture has gone mad.” “Perhaps it does not like it when things are not in their proper places.” “What does that mean?” Sarah looked directly at him. “A traveler should be on the road when they wish to continue. A guest should be a guest, not someone forbidden to leave. When everyone is placed where they do not belong, it is no surprise that chairs begin to get confused.” Pharaoh wanted to argue. At that very moment, the crown on his head turned backward. Sarah could not keep from smiling. Pharaoh removed the crown, looked at it, and suddenly laughed too. “All right,” he said. “I understand the hint.” He ordered Abraham brought to him. “You may continue your journey,” Pharaoh said. “No one will keep you.” “Thank you,” said Abraham. Sarah added, “Your servants will probably need some sleep. They have run a great deal after furniture tonight.” Pharaoh sighed. “If my palace is still upside down in the morning, I will travel with you.” But as soon as he said that the guests were free, the palace became quiet. In the distant hall, the carpet unrolled itself. The chairs turned back toward the tables. The curtains untied their knots. The jugs stood still on their shelves. And the crown in Pharaoh’s hand seemed to turn the correct way by itself. “At last,” whispered the chief writer. “The world is standing straight again.” The next morning, Abraham and Sarah left the palace. Pharaoh gave them provisions for the road and ordered the gates opened before them. When they were far away, Sarah looked back at the sunlit walls. “What do you think that was?” asked Abraham. “A miracle? A guardian spirit? Or did the palace simply decide to give its opinion?” Sarah smiled. “I do not know. But sometimes, for a person to hear the simple word ‘no,’ a whole palace has to turn upside down.” People say that after that, Pharaoh always asked a guest before keeping them at the palace, “Do you truly wish to stay?” And the old servants told the same story for many years: the night when chairs moved, stairs confused their direction, dishes ran from their owner, and a great palace taught its ruler one simple rule—hospitality is good only when doors open in both directions.

May this story leave a little light in your heart ✨