Hinds’ Feet on High Places

Much-Afraid and her companions slowly make their way up into the mountains. While Much-Afraid initially shrinks from embracing her two companions, she is forced repeatedly to take their hands for assistance; finding them painful at first, she eventually realizes their great strength in helping her to overcome obstacles she would have had no success with on her own. In turn, she also realizes that she is going to encounter a number of her old enemies along the way, as the Fearing clan discovered Much-Afraid’s flight into the mountains and “found it quite intolerable that of them all she alone should be singled out in this way and be taken to live on the High Places” (38). Filled with jealousy, they decide to send a distant relation of the family, Pride—a handsome and charismatic young man—to lure her back to the Valley of Humiliation.

Only a few days into their journey, Much-Afraid and her companions encounter Pride in the midst of their path. Pride at once attempts to denigrate the Shepherd and her desires: “When he gets you up to the wild, desolate parts of the mountains, he will abandon you altogether, and you will be put to lasting shame” (40). Finding it difficult to disengage herself from Pride, she cries out to the Shepherd, who promised to come when she called: “Come to me, Shepherd! Come quickly! Make no tarrying, O my Lord” (42).