A Love Story for All Time    
A study in the book of Ruth
lesson #4: Ruth chapter four.

Scripture:

Now Boaz went up to the gate, and sat down there. Behold, the near kinsman of whom Boaz spoke came by; to whom he said, “Come over here, friend, and sit down!” He turned aside, and sat down. He took ten men of the elders of the city, and said, “Sit down here.” They sat down. He said to the near kinsman, “Naomi, who has come back out of the country of Moab, is selling the parcel of land, which was our brother Elimelech’s. I thought to disclose it to you, saying, ‘Buy it before those who sit here, and before the elders of my people.’ If you will redeem it, redeem it; but if you will not redeem it, then tell me, that I may know. For there is no one to redeem it besides you; and I am after you.”

He said, “I will redeem it.”

Then Boaz said, “On the day you buy the field from the hand of Naomi, you must buy it also from Ruth the Moabitess, the wife of the dead, to raise up the name of the dead on his inheritance.”

The near kinsman said, “I can’t redeem it for myself, lest I mar my own inheritance. Take my right of redemption for yourself; for I can’t redeem it.”

Now this was the custom in former time in Israel concerning redeeming and concerning exchanging, to confirm all things: a man took off his shoe, and gave it to his neighbor; and this was the way of attestation in Israel. So the near kinsman said to Boaz, “Buy it for yourself.” He took off his shoe.

Boaz said to the elders, and to all the people, “You are witnesses this day, that I have bought all that was Elimelech’s, and all that was Chilion’s and Mahlon’s, from the hand of Naomi. Moreover Ruth the Moabitess, the wife of Mahlon, I have purchased to be my wife, to raise up the name of the dead on his inheritance, that the name of the dead not be cut off from among his brothers, and from the gate of his place. You are witnesses this day.”

All the people who were in the gate, and the elders, said, “We are witnesses. May Yahweh make the woman who has come into your house like Rachel and like Leah, which two built the house of Israel; and treat you worthily in Ephrathah, and be famous in Bethlehem. Let your house be like the house of Perez, whom Tamar bore to Judah, of the seed which Yahweh shall give you of this young woman.”

So Boaz took Ruth, and she became his wife; and he went in to her, and Yahweh gave her conception, and she bore a son. The women said to Naomi, “Blessed be Yahweh, who has not left you this day without a near kinsman; and let his name be famous in Israel. He shall be to you a restorer of life, and sustain you in your old age, for your daughter-in-law, who loves you, who is better to you than seven sons, has borne him.” Naomi took the child, and laid it in her bosom, and became nurse to it. The women, her neighbors, gave him a name, saying, “There is a son born to Naomi;” and they named him Obed. He is the father of Jesse, the father of David.

Now this is the history of the generations of Perez: Perez became the father of Hezron, and Hezron became the father of Ram, and Ram became the father of Amminadab, and Amminadab became the father of Nahshon, and Nahshon became the father of Salmon, and Salmon became the father of Boaz, and Boaz became the father of Obed, and Obed became the father of Jesse, and Jesse became the father of David.

Ruth chapter Four       (World English Bible)

[.]

A Love Story for All Time    
A study in the book of Ruth
lesson #4: Ruth chapter four.

Bible Study:

The last chapter of the book of Ruth begins with an interesting custom. It finds its roots in the law of the Redeemer that was mentioned in the previous chapter. Remember that every piece of property was a part of a family inheritance. When a property was lost to another owner, a family member could step in and buy the property back, just to keep it in the family.

In the same way, a member of the family could step in to liberate a person who had fallen into slavery. They would buy the person’s freedom, or buy them back from slavery. That purchase was the definition of redemption.

But there was another aspect to redemption, and it again focused on the need for a family line or a line of inheritance. If a woman’s husband died, and she had no children to pass on the family inheritance, the brother of the first husband could take the wife as his own.

The first child born to them would be the legal heir of the first husband. In that way, the woman found safety and family, and the name of the dead man continued, guaranteeing that his inheritance would continue as well.

If that all seems confusing, it wasn’t all that clear even back then. Not everyone would step in to spend money on someone else’s property or take in a brother’s wife. In either case, the act of redemption would cost something.

Here in Ruth, the situation is doubly complicated. There is a property to purchase, and there is a young woman who needs a husband. As they are presented here, the two are one and the same problem.

Which makes for great drama.

As you can see at the end of chapter three, Boaz is on a mission. He has decided to act as the redeemer for Ruth and Noami, but someone else has a closer claim. There is another relative who has the first option, as it were, on the property of Naomi.

And presumably he has the first option to marry Ruth. So Baoz needs a meeting with the relative.

Before Boaz can act, the nearer relative has to refuse to act. The relative has to give up his right to the property. Boaz has already told Ruth that the relative can do whatever he wants. Boaz will abide by the decision.

But I suspect that he will not give up without a fight. Or at least without some haggling.

Boaz doesn’t go looking for the relative. He goes instead to the gate of the city. You get the feeling that everybody went through the gate at one time or another. Most people seem to live in the city and work in fields that lie outside the walls, all around Bethlehem.

So maybe the gate is the natural place to find people. You will often see references to important matters being decided there, as if the gate area served as a town square or a city hall. 

In this case, Boaz finds all that he needs. The relative comes by, and Boaz also collects a group of important citizens of Bethlehem to serve as witnesses to the upcoming transaction.

“Naomi has a plot of ground,” he says, “and she intends to sell it.”

If the relative will buy the ground, then he should say so. Otherwise Boaz is ready and willing to make the transaction.

The relative decides that he will buy the ground.  

But then Boaz adds the big condition. And it’s kind of unclear why the two are connected at this point. We just don’t have the proper legal training in Old Testament law.

But here’s the condition.

In order to own the property, the relative must—or at least should—marry the widow.

In the language of corporate takeovers, this would be called a poison pill. Sure, you can pick up a piece of property. No big deal. Even if at some point there would be an assumption that the land would return to Naomi, or to a descendent, it’s just land.

Land is purchased and sold all the time. It requires little personal commitment and it makes no demands on a person’s private life.

But a wife is something quite different.

So buying the land is easy. Marrying the widow is much more complicated.

And just a note here. Boaz doesn’t say which widow. Maybe the dude thought of Naomi, the widow of Elimelech, who originally owned the property. Maybe Boaz was trying to make the deal seem as unappealing as possible. Maybe.

But most likely the relative understood that Ruth could also raise up an heir, and most likely he understood that Naomi would not have children of her own.

So he probably knew. But I just get the feeling that Boaz is doing his best to manipulate this transaction in his favor.

Think of the rules that governed this community. Ruth cannot simply go out and meet a potential suitor for coffee. Naomi cannot simply broker a deal for a new husband for Ruth, probably because she has no property or money to offer.

And now Boaz cannot simply marry Ruth, because the lines of responsibility are so clearly defined. The relative must decide first. That is the rule of polite and orderly society.

So Boaz is working the system. And he does a pretty good job.

You’ll take the land. But will you take the woman as well?

 We don’t get a good feeling at this point for how time passes during the negotiation. It almost sounds like the answer is immediate.

Whoa! Hold on there!

It sounds like the relative already has children. And maybe he has a wife also. Another wife might not be a problem, but children by another wife would mess up the line of inheritance. The children already in his house might lose something to the new kids.

Maybe some of his hard-earned savings would go to children of a woman from Moab. Maybe that’s the problem. Maybe he wasn’t so eager to take in this foreigner.

Maybe he wanted Naomi’s land for himself, and a son by Ruth would take the name of Elimelech, and then he would take the property that the relative had just purchased. So that would be a waste of money.

We just don’t know. There’s no reason to think that this relative is a bad guy. So the simplest explanation is that a son by another wife would complicate the line of inheritance for his current children.

So the deal is off. Boaz already said that he was willing to take the land, and—

Let’s assume for a moment that this is a small town. I just have the feeling that a lot of people have seen the way Boaz treats Ruth. I think they know something is going to happen there.

So the relative may have been standing there, waiting for Boaz to go through his elaborate speech, knowing full well the status of the property, and knowing full well that the proper answer for Ruth and Naomi would include a husband for Ruth.

And knowing, full well, that Boaz is the right man to solve both problems.

So his willingness to take the property may simply be a polite gesture, when he knows that he will not complete the transaction. And when Boaz mentions Ruth, the relative has his opportunity to politely decline and allow Boaz to do what only he can do.

Will you take the property?

Of course. (wink, wink)

Will you marry Ruth?

Oh, my! I never thought of that! (wink, wink) That would seriously complicate my life! Plus my current wife would kill me! I suppose I’ll have to decline. Wait, why don’t you do it?! (wink, wink)

And a group of very important people are there to see the whole thing. They will say later that the relative was gracious and benevolent, but he deferred to Boaz only out of his own deep and abiding kindness.

So everybody looks good.

And in the end, Boaz is the dude.

There was a provision in the old Law of the Redeemer for the widow to confront a relative and demand that he do the right thing. If he would not, she would take off his sandal and wave it around, saying that he should now and forever be known as the guy with no sandal. 

You can find this provision in Deuteronomy 25. The woman would actually spit in the guy’s face. So the sandal thing was an insult.

But it seems to have evolved here in the book of Ruth. It almost sounds as if there is a sandal ceremony for any transaction.

Here, take my sandal. This should be proof of my intentions.

There is no stigma here for the relative. He simply steps aside and allows Boaz to serve as the nearer relative, the Redeemer.

Not a big deal, on the face of it. But let’s keep that image in mind for later. One relative steps aside to let another serve as the Redeemer.

The group of witnesses have a toast with which they seal the transaction that Boaz has just made. They offer good wishes for Boaz and Ruth. They should have many children, just like Rachel and Leah.

Rachel and Leah were the wives of Jacob. Their children are the sons of Jacob who became the twelve tribes of Israel, more or less.

And even more telling is the mention of Judah and Tamar. Tamar was a young woman who married a son of Judah, a grandson of Jacob. The husband died, and the brother refused to serve as a redeemer for her. He died, too.

Judah was unwilling to let her have any more of his sons. She was apparently bad luck. So she fooled him. She disguised herself as a prostitute and waited for Judah, her father-in-law.

Her son, Perez, was a child of that brief relationship. When people saw that she was expecting a child, and she had no husband, they wanted to kill her for being unfaithful.

But she had proof that her father-in-law was the father of her child. He had, in fact, done what his sons should have done. He had raised up an heir for Tamar.

All in all, it was a sordid story. Yet God blessed the line of Judah, especially through that very son of Tamar, and now Boaz and Ruth are a part of that line. Ruth, the outsider from Moab, is much like Tamar herself, the outsider from Canaan. They both carry on the line of inheritance in Judah.

But Ruth’s story is much better.  

And just to wrap up the story, there is a son born in the near future, and he is a delight to anyone around him.

And the one who is most delighted is Naomi. This is a wonderful picture of joy and purpose and life and heritage and all sorts of good stuff.

Naomi almost seems young again.

Remember, her name means “pleasant.” And now it fits her once again.

They name the child Obed, which seems to mean “servant.” He will serve to brighten the days of his grandmother, Naomi.

In the words of the people of Bethlehem, “Naomi has a son.”

And that son is more significant than she can know. The person writing the story of Ruth fills in some of the missing pieces.

Obed will have a son, named Jesse. And Jesse will be the father of David, who will be the greatest king in the history of Israel.

When the prophet Samuel comes looking for a king, he will come to Bethlehem and find the house of Jesse, where the young David is growing up.

Bethlehem. The city of kings.

And there, the book of Ruth ends. All by itself, this is a great story. A love story. A story of redemption.

And there is a king just a few generations removed.

Now how much would you pay for this story?

But wait. There is more than even the writer could know.

Bethlehem would produce more than one king. David was just the beginning.

Jesus will be born here in Bethlehem, and he will trace his family back to David.

Matthew and Luke will both spell out the family line of Joseph. Each will name Boaz, and Matthew will include Ruth and Tamar in the line.

So this great and miraculous redemption is just a small echo of a much larger and more all-encompassing redemption that comes through Jesus. Christ came to serve as a Redeemer, to purchase souls out of slavery.

And just as Ruth is a love story and not just a sterile formula for financial success, the ministry of the Son of God is a love story that stretches out to cover anyone who will walk or limp or stumble to him.

Today, because of Christ, there is blessing and abundance for anyone who comes to take shelter under the wings of a loving God.

This book of Ruth is not just a cool story. This could be anyone’s story. This is our story, if we are willing to be a part of it.

And it might be possible to see in the story of Ruth some fine and delicate details of redemption.

For example, the closer relative.

Let’s not read too much into this, but notice that there was someone who could not serve as a redeemer. He sounds like the older brother in the story of the prodigal son.

There is a hint of new covenant here. The old way can’t step in and provide what Ruth needs. And the law of the Old Testament can’t accomplish what we all really need. It can’t save. It can’t redeem.

When the time comes that the real redeemer steps forward, the Old Testament can only move out of the way and let God do the work that is necessary.

In the same way that the closer relative makes way for Boaz, the Old Testament points the way to the New Covenant in Christ.

It can do nothing more.

And if that seems like we’re making too big a deal out of this one small point, remember that the book of Ruth is more than just the story.

It is an example of the grace of God. To the weak. To the stranger, who has never known the protection of the law and the prophets. To the outsider, who has no claim to the inheritance that everyone in Judah had received.

Grace reaches outside the walls, outside the comfortable church, outside to the places where we think God cannot or will not go.

The story of Ruth is that grace overflows to the most unlikely places. And the most unlikely people.

And I’m glad that it does.

[.]

A Love Story for All Time    
A study in the book of Ruth
lesson #4: Ruth chapter four.

Paraphrase:

Boaz sat down where the people of the town were known to come and go. He watched for the man who was closer to Naomi’s family, and when he came along, Boaz invited him to sit and talk.

The man sat down, and Boaz gathered some of the well-known citizens of Bethlehem to sit with them as they talked business.

“Naomi is selling a piece of land,” Boaz said to the relative. “This would be her husband’s land, and I thought you should buy it. No one else can redeem it, but if you don’t redeem the land, then I will buy it.”

"No problem,” the man said. “I will buy the land.”

Then Boaz told him the rest of the deal. “When you buy the land, you also are required to raise up a child for the widow of the dead man, so that the family will always have an heir to own the property.”

But the relative said, "Then I can’t do it. I might endanger the line of inheritance for my own estate. You do it."

In the old days, it was customary in these transactions for one of the parties to remove a sandal and give it to the other person. It was a sign, like the stamp of a notary or something.

So the relative removed his sandal and told Boaz, "Buy the land yourself."

All the people sitting around them saw the transaction and heard what the man said to Boaz. Boaz said, “You are witnesses that I have bought from Naomi all the property of Elimelech, Kilion and Mahlon. I have also taken Ruth, the woman from Moab, Mahlon's widow, as my wife. Her children will maintain the name of the dead man with his property, so that his name will not disappear from among his family or from the town records."

The witnesses agreed. And they said, "May the LORD make the woman who is coming into your home like Rachel and Leah, who together built up the house of Israel. May you be well respected throughout the area and famous in the town of Bethlehem. When the LORD gives children to you and Ruth, may your family be like that of Perez, our very famous ancestor, who was born to Judah and Tamar.”

So Ruth became the wife of Boaz, and he loved her. And the LORD gave her a son.

The women of the town all said to Naomi, "Praise be to the LORD, because he has not left you without a kinsman-redeemer. May this boy become famous throughout Israel! He will make you feel young again and care for you in your old age, for he is the son of your wonderful daughter-in-law, who is better to you than seven sons."

Naomi took the child in her lap and cared for him. All the talk of the town was that Naomi had a son. They named the boy Obed. He was the father of Jesse, the father of David.

Beginning then with Perez, this is his family line:

Perez was the father of Hezron, Hezron the father of Ram, Ram the father of Amminadab, Amminadab the father of Nahshon, Nahshon the father of Salmon, Salmon the father of Boaz, Boaz the father of Obed, Obed the father of Jesse, and Jesse the father of David.

Ruth chapter four     (paraphrased)

[.]

A Love Story for All Time    
A study in the book of Ruth
lesson #4: Ruth chapter four.

Story:

The Long Journey to Pleasant Valley

by Bob Freye

Chapter Four: Home

Oscar Kuzzins kept a store on Main Street that sold pretty much anything a person might need. Except fresh food. Nothing perishable. But things like coffee or flour were stacked on a shelf someplace behind the counter, usually in a large enough bag to last a while, so you didn’t have to worry about running out anytime soon.

But the best thing about Oscar’s store was the wide awning that extended out over the plank sidewalk in the front of the store. In a rainstorm, the awning was the only shelter on Main Street. And in the hot summer sun, it offered shade all day.

As far as Oscar was concerned, anyone waiting outside the store was a potential customer. So he made it easy for people to stay around. He put out some rough, heavy chairs that weren’t likely to blow away in the wind or wouldn’t be missed if they did.

So it became common practice for people to wander over to Oscar’s and stand under the awning or sit in one of the rough wooden chairs with their feet propped up. On a slow day, you could trade stories for a while. When there was business to discuss, the short stretch of plank sidewalk became a kind of town hall.

When Tag Bozeman arrived at Oscar’s store, he found a small crowd already collected there, nestled comfortably into chairs and happy to be out of the afternoon sun. Tag sat next to the banker, who was talking with the mayor, who had been talking politics with the most reputable lawyer in the territory.

“Taking a break?” the mayor asked. He didn’t think Tag took many of those.

“Business,” Tag said with eye on the doorway to Oscar’s store.

Very important business. And before it was done, he would need the banker’s help. Maybe the lawyer, too, so it was good that they were all in place.  

Oscar poked his head out of the door and gave a nod in Tag’s direction, just to be neighborly. Tag waved him over, and Oscar brought his broom outside and stood for a moment with his customers.

“Just the man I wanted to see,” Tag said.

Oscar brightened at the notion of a big order for the store. Tag had emptied the shelves on more than one occasion, and Oscar was always happy to accommodate the most prosperous ranch in the area.

“I understand that you have an interest in an old farm,” Tag said. “The place is kind of abandoned and run down. Thinking of buying it for yourself?”

The secret to good business was in reading the eyes of the person across the table, or on the other side of the sidewalk, in this case. So Oscar thought for a bit, even though he knew the answer to the question. He was certainly interested in the little farm. But what did Tag want with such a feeble piece of real estate?

That was the question.

“I might be,” Oscar said, as if the idea had only just occurred to him.

“It’s as good as done,” the banker chuckled. “I’ve got the check.”

“Maybe so,” Oscar said, still measuring the direction of the conversation. 

“I was just thinking,” Tag continued, “that Naomi is back in town now, and she would need a place to stay. And seeing as it was her place—”

“She doesn’t have the money to make good on that farm,” Oscar said. “If someone bought the land, they would be doing her a favor to take such a broken-down wreck off her hands.”

“True enough,” Tag admitted, “and good of you, I must say, to be so interested in Naomi’s welfare. I was just going to say—“

His attention was diverted, and he turned to greet a small huddle of women who were walking along the plank sidewalk.

“Good afternoon, ladies,” he said.

“Don’t mind us,” Grace Easely said.

“We don’t want to interrupt your business,” Ardice Lawton added, and the women did their best to be inconspicuous as they walked past.

“No, stay,” Tag insisted. “We might just need your help with this. We were just discussing what could be done to help Naomi.” 

“Oh, poor dear,” Grace moaned. She was quite delighted to stay for the conversation, by the way. They were all on their way to Oscar’s store anyway.

Well, not originally.

But they had heard someone mention Naomi’s name. They caught it ten or maybe twelve paces back. They all had excellent hearing, when it suited them. And as if by some kind of silent communication that their husbands would never understand, the entire group of women instantly contrived to putter around Oscar’s store and listen through the open door.

Standing outside, though, would be much easier.

“It’s a terrible thing, what’s happened to her,” Tag agreed. “But Oscar here was just saying that he wanted to help out.”

“Oh!” The ladies looked impressed, though they didn’t believe a word of it.

“He is willing to pay the back taxes and take the burden of the farm off of the frail, weary back of our Naomi, who is a relative and a good woman.”

Tag could sound very solemn when it suited him.

“That leaves just one problem,” he continued. “How are these two women going to support themselves?”

He looked from one face to the next. The men all wore blank expressions. This was business, and Tag would supply his own answer, when he was ready.

The faces of the women were different. Tag could see something there, just a hint of a smirk, as if they had an answer in mind and thought he was simply the slowest man in the entire county.

But then, he had heard that before. It almost made him smile.

“The answer is simple,” Tag said to the group. “The young woman who came with Naomi—“

He searched his memory.

“Ruth—is that her name? She seems like a nice girl.”

Ardice just about gave him a slap. Stop dawdling and say what you have to say!

“What someone should do,” Tag suggested, “is marry that young woman and give her a proper home.”

The men were surprised. They had never thought of that simple and elegant solution to the problem. They had talked about it, and some had even dreamed about it, but for the sake of the drama that was unfolding, their official story was that they had never actually thought about it.

“What about you, Oscar?” Tag asked the shopkeeper. “You should marry Ruth and settle down on that farm, so you could take care of Naomi.”

“Who are you marrying?” Alice Kuzzins walked out of the store and glared at her husband.

“Oh, that’s right,” Tag said, sounding forgetful and very disappointed. “That would be a problem.”

“If I find out this was his idea,” Alice announced, “then he can just move out to that broken-down parcel of weeds and not show his face here again.”

“Look, I need that farm,” Oscar said, ignoring his wife’s hollow threat. “My boys are growing up, and we need land to spread out, maybe build a cabin or two down there. They’ll have their own families soon enough.” 

That’s what Tag needed to know.

“Tell you what,” he said to Oscar. “I have forty acres down by the river. Big enough for several good home sites. Good enough land for one boy to farm some.”

He was thoughtful for a moment. He needed a short pause so that the offer could rumble around in Oscar’s brain for a bit.

“I’ll sell it to you for a dollar,” Tag waited a moment more, “if you step away and allow me to take Naomi’s old place.”

Oscar had nearly made up his mind.

“If my boy farms,” he said, “he’ll need more than forty acres.”

Tag dropped his blank expression. Now they could make the deal.

“I’ll give you a good price,” he said, “when the time comes.”

“I can’t take no charity,” Oscar complained. “A dollar isn’t a proper price for forty acres.”   

But Alice Kuzzins stepped forward with a coin in her hand.

“Sold,” she announced.

Tag pocketed the coin and turned to the banker. “Can you tear up Oscar’s check?”

“Done,” the banker said. “I’ll draw up new paperwork, and you can come by to sign it.”

“Then that’s it,” Tag told the group. “I will purchase the property, for Naomi, and I will marry Ruth and make a proper home for her, which means she won’t be working at Beth’s for much longer.”

The men made a note to eat lunch at Beth’s the next day.

But some of the women looked indignant.

“You are making a lot of assumptions, Tag Bozeman,” Ardice said. “That young woman has a mind of her own. Don’t you think you should let her make her own choice of who she’ll marry?”

He looked every bit the part of the chastised schoolboy. He took off his hat and looked around at the group.

“You’re right, of course. I didn’t mean to presume anything. I’ll be sure to—“

As he turned around to make his apologies, something flew at him from the direction of the road. He caught her in his arms, and she hung on as he spun her around so fast that her feet lifted off the ground.

“I would say that you could take that as a yes,” the lawyer commented.

As Tag slowed the spiral, Ruth’s feet touched down gently. But it was clear to everyone there that her head was still somewhere up in the clouds.

Even the women smiled.

“I think great things will come of this,” Grace said.

And they did. The first great thing started out small. Taggart Eli Chadwick Hartwell Bozeman. Named after half the family tree, he grew up with a good sense of his heritage.

He knew his grandmother’s touch from the first day. And just as she gave care and love to him, he brought a joy and a youthfulness to Naomi’s heart.

And that was just the beginning. When the territory became a state, Taggart Bozeman served as the first governor, and some would say that he was the best to ever fill the office.

And of his sons and daughters, and his brothers and sisters, the full story hasn’t been told yet. It was already a great story in its own right, the kindness shown to two widows left alone at Beth’s doorstep.

But then a little kindness and a little grace are never enough.

And they never come by accident. Ruth would ask herself what would have happened if the driver had left them off short of Pleasant Valley when their money had run out. What if Beth had not sheltered them when it was no profit to her? What if Tag Bozeman had packed his own lunch that day?

It all could have been so different.

But it wasn’t. It wasn’t different. It was good beyond her wildest dreams.

There had to be a reason.

One good thing might be a coincidence. Two could qualify as a conspiracy. But a lifetime of grace is a plan, the work of Someone who brings lonely widows to the shelter of a pleasant home, no matter how long the journey or how bleak the future.

Ruth knew that she was living a story that had been written for her.

Every time she lifted young Taggart, or passed the barn at the edge of town, or visited Beth, she stopped to give thanks to the One who was writing the story.

And every time she watched the stage pull into town, she stopped to pray.

Someone else might be coming to the end of a long and difficult journey.

Someone else might be coming home.

[.]