My name is Cecilia. I'm a member of a small, exclusive community bound together by common rituals and lifestyles. We've been active for hundreds of years. We are present in almost every country of the world but, unlike other close-knit communities, we are not easily identified.
Communities like the Amish, Mennonites and Hittites are easily identified by their penchant of living in communal groups with distinguishable clothing and lifestyles. Those communities frequently draw the attention of non-members of the group, most of it unpleasant. To avoid such ridicule and scorn, we live among the rest of society individually or in small groups.
In our own homes and places of worship, we adopt the dress and strictures of our faith. In public we adopt the dress and habits of the majority. Some who don't understand our reasoning consider us to be less than obedient to our faith by this dual commitment. Within our faith, concealing our true selves from the rest of society is not an act of infidelity but an act of strength and courage, protecting ourselves and our faith from external attacks that could destroy our society.
We adhere to many strictures imposed to protect and grow our community, one of which is we are obliged to have many children and raise them in the faith. To accomplish this, we are encouraged to marry early and within the faith. Most everyone agrees with this convention and marriages are celebrated and revered within the society.
However, this penchant to marry and procreate within the faith has an unfortunate consequence, one not spoken about between members of the community but recognized by all. We are limited numbers and, by definition, we have a small genetic pool to pass on to our children. Genetic inbreeding is well known to create problems in subsequent generations as evidenced by the royal families of many countries.
While not spoken about or included in the documents of the faith, it is a problem that needs to be addressed and addressing the problem is strictly the responsibility of the women. The reason is obvious. A child born of the union between a faithful man and a woman outside the community will not be born into the community, while a woman pregnant with the child of an outsider will birth the child within the community and be raised consistent with the faith. It is believed that if every woman bears at least one child conceived outside the community it is sufficient to fortify the gene pool.
In keeping with conventions of the faith, I was married to Jacob when I was sixteen years old and Jacob was seventeen. Two years later we welcomed Rebecca into our household and community. Soon after Rebecca's birth, I was approached by two of the women elders of the faith. They took me to a private place and educated me on the dangers of a limited gene pool. They informed me of the process necessary to mitigate the problem and my responsibility to the community to conceive a child from someone outside the faith.
I was appalled at the suggestion from these women. I was committed to Jacob and faithfulness to him was paramount in my mind. The suggestion that I would have sex with another man and bear his child was a violation of my wedding vows and an act against God.
The women were very patient with me. They explained that without the commitment of the women, our community would have perished long ago. They explained that rather than an act against God, my action was blessed by God as a devotion to him necessary for the preservation of a group of his chosen people.
When I reiterated my concern over my commitment to Jacob, they explained that, while he would never speak about it, Jacob was aware of the issue and would raise all my children as if they were his own, never knowing if any of them were conceived through my devotion to my faith and God. They also emphasized that the children should never know the origins of their conception either.
In the end, they convinced me that I had a social and moral duty to conceive a child by someone outside the faith. "Trust us," they said as they left. "You'll never regret it."
Convinced that I had to proceed, I needed to identify a suitable candidate. The two women were unable to help me. I needed to find someone that presented a reasonable genetic profile and who I was willing to have sex with. Their only suggestion was that, since I was free to mingle among the wider community, I had the ability to select someone of good appearance, good health, strong of body and character and of superior intelligence.
I was working at the local community college and attending classes there. It occurred to me that one of the young professors would be an ideal choice. Thomas, who taught advanced physics and led the local chapter of Mensa quickly, became a top candidate for me. I memorized his schedule and managed to join him at lunch in the cafeteria one day when he was sitting alone at a table. After a stimulating conversation where I learned that he read extensively and worked out in the gym four days a week, I determined to make Thomas the father of my next child.
I arranged my schedule so that I "bumped" into Thomas more frequently and, over the next three months we became friends. One day at lunch, I got the courage to ask him if we could talk later about a personal matter to me. He agreed to meet me at five in the physics lab since it would be empty then.
In the lab, I explained that what I had to share was very personal and requested his commitment to honor that and share what I had to say with no one. He agreed. I explained the nature of my faith and the issue surrounding procreation with a limited gene pool. I asked if he would be willing to assist me.
"You want me to have sex with you?" Thomas asked.
"No, and yes," I equivocated. "No in the sense of prolonged sex with foreplay leading eventually to intercourse. Yes, in that I want you to donate your sperm for a good cause and actual sex is the best way to accomplish that," I explained.
"I see," Thomas said considering my offer. "When would you like to do this?" he asked.
"You're willing?" I asked.
"I am," he confirmed to my relief.
"The best time would be at the peak of my fertility during the month," I told him.
"When would that be?" he asked.
"Next Thursday," I said.
"So soon?" he asked.
"If not then, then twenty-eight days later," I explained.
"How do you think we can manage?" he asked.
"I'll get a motel room over lunch, if that's okay with you," I suggested.
"Let me get the room and we should plan for a long lunch," he offered.
"It shouldn't take that long," I countered.
"You never know. Best to plan for the time and not need it," he told me.
"Okay," I said.
"Okay," he echoed. "Meet me in back of the physics building at noon on Thursday," he suggested.
"Thank you," I said.
"No need to thank me. Thank you for choosing me."
On Thursday, I met Thomas behind the physics building. He was waiting in his car for me. When he saw me exit the building, he got out of the car and waited for me. "You should move your car," he said.
I didn't immediately understand his reasoning.
"You don't want anyone to notice that you're not here but your car is," he explained.
"Where should I take it?" I asked.
"I'll meet you in the Wal-Mart parking lot," he suggested.
