Joshua Meracle

The churchgoers at Valentine church have been greeted by the softest of smiles and kindest of eyes for quite a while, since for over two decades Joshua Meracle has been acting as the most humble servant of God in the town of Valentine. A man whose mere presence radiates warmth, Joshua is an approachable pastor, very fitting for a man who should be bringing the congregation together in an age heavily leaning on religion as a pillar of society. Joshua’s aura is easily malleable, shifting from welcoming, to reassuring, or perhaps comforting when it is needed. Emotions are often easily readable from Joshua’s expressive features, lending him quite the credible and down-to-earth image. That is not to say that Joshua is incapable of hiding anything going through his head, even though he is the furthest from a master manipulator one could get.[break][break]

The body language Joshua presents is often polite and muted, though not entirely absent. Yet it becomes clear that this is a formed habit and a front, as whenever the man gets even the slightest bit excited, his gestures shape into something more expressive. This is often suppressed pretty quickly, turning back into the polished appearance Joshua wishes to keep. Keeping up this appearance carries on into outfitting his slightly heavier set body, as Joshua wears mostly neat suits, rarely being seen in anything else around the town. After all, he has a reputation to uphold as one of the people who should lead by example within Valentine. It wouldn’t do if the town pastor went about the town in rags, even though vanity isn’t fitting for a pastor either. Still, a servant of God should always look presentable, as far as Joshua is concerned. Yet his hair and beard are perhaps a bit ungroomed compared to the rest of his appearance, though they aren't exactly wild or unkempt. Even though Joshua wishes to present himself as a proper reverend, he isn't willing to let it define himself entirely, and there are certain expectations he wishes to break—one of them being the ability to wear his hair and facial hair in a way that might not be exactly characteristic for a pastor.[break]






Being one of Valentine’s most known townspeople, it isn’t a surprise that this kind and welcoming man is almost universally liked within the town. With his big heart, Joshua is always willing to aid people if possible. Though he mainly offers comfort and reassurance instead of concrete help, many people know to come to him in a time of need. After all, it is practically a part of Joshua’s job description—yet obligation is not the only reason for his altruism. He genuinely cares for the community, especially the poor and unfortunate. Since he has no family of his own, he focuses on the people of his hometown, many of whom he has known since his youth, or given them a blessing at the very beginning of their lives. [break][break]

As one might guess, Joshua thrives among people. Though he is quite outgoing, his approach is calm and soft, yet often one might catch glimpses of a more high-spirited, lively side to him. Genuine, unbridled joy tends to rise through to the surface quite often. Joshua has always been one to live through others, so to say, so Joshua tends to show his unfiltered happiness for others. Though heavier discussions are never an issue for him either. Joshua never finds it difficult to engage in any kind of conversation, as he has heard it all when people have unloaded their problems to him. Be it about death of a relative, sins one might have committed, temptations they may have fallen for, or other heavy or controversial topics, Joshua is rarely surprised by anything anymore. As long as people are kind at heart, he doesn’t condemn. Instead he offers understanding, comforting words, and forgiveness—even if it isn’t his to give. After all, he knows that God will forgive them, even if the people they did wrong by wouldn’t. Besides, doesn’t everyone deserve a second chance, to feel like they truly belong?[break][break]

Despite his radiating positivity and kindness, Joshua is not without his own struggles—one of the most pressing ones being his sexuality. Considering his christian upbringing and devotion to God, it is hardly surprising that Joshua harbors immense guilt and shame for not fitting into the expectations set by the church. After all, raising a family is every man’s godly duty, isn’t it? Yet Joshua has been unable to force himself to go through such a thing, opting to claim that he wishes to commit his undivided attention to the community, as well as God. Yet only if not being willing to get married and start a family was the only source of shame for Joshua. The way he yearns for another man’s companionship, affection, touch—it has always been something Joshua has tried to repress, but the way he feels never seems to change. These thoughts and feelings he has labeled as temptation, one he is not willing to fall for. So far he has managed to keep himself in check, though at the cost of feeling extremely starved of companionship. [break][break]

Despite his heart longing for someone to share his life with, as well as his outgoing nature, Joshua tends to need his own space too. Sometimes it’s all a bit too much, and Joshua needs to retreat for a bit. One of Joshua’s favorite things is to take a walk just outside of Valentine with a notebook, and scribble down sketches of the nature around him. It’s a habit formed in his childhood that has carried well into his adult life, just like his affinity for reading. Though in his adult life, Joshua has taken on whittling, carving little animal figures out of pieces of wood, which he gifts to the children around town. He’s been doing this for a bit over a decade now, and his wooden sculptures have gotten pretty impressive. Besides, nothing beats the joy of a child getting their hands on one of the little animals Joshua makes. At its core, seeing the happy faces of the children is the best reward.
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The small and sleepy town of Valentine acted as the backdrop for when the Meracle family welcomed their first born son into the world. Joshua was a quiet child even as a baby—cherub-like, the adults around him described him. He never ventured out to explore with his three younger brothers, Adam, William, and Nicholas, instead choosing to stick near his mother, helping out around the house, or reading once he was old enough. His highly religious parents encouraged the boy to take on the church’s teachings from a very young age, and were delighted to see him pick up the Bible. Every Sunday the family went to the recently built church, where Joshua’s father acted as a groundskeeper. Quiet and calm, Joshua never had an issue sitting in the uncomfortable pews, unlike his brothers, who would always be berated for not acting proper at church. This created a deeper rift between Joshua and his brothers, as his parents seemed to favor him as the golden oldest child.[break][break]

During his teenage years, Joshua continued being on the calmer side. He studied diligently in the local public school, which left him with relatively little spare time. As a result Joshua didn’t exactly have many friends. Not that he was too much into the same things as the rest of the boys his age. He was deemed a bore and a prude, as he didn’t care about going to the forest to shoot birds for sport, or peeping through the window of the prettiest girl in their class in hopes of catching a glimpse of something scandalous. No, Joshua spent his spare time glued to his books, which earned him quite a lot more praise from his parents.[break][break]

The proudest the Meracle couple was of their oldest son was when finally after finishing school he headed out to study theology. This wasn’t exactly a surprise to anyone, since Joshua had decided that he wanted to become a pastor years ago. Still, it was a big thing in their small rural community, having one of their children move out to study, and theology no less. It was the first time Joshua left his hometown, so arriving to a big city was quite the shock to the small town boy on the brink of adulthood. It took him quite a while to get used to the busy city life, though during his studies he never stopped missing the peace of the countryside. [break][break]

A busier life wasn’t the only change the new environment brought with it. Adapting to this situation forced Joshua on a journey of self-discovery. For the first time ever he met like-minded peers, whom he connected with on a level he never had with the small town boys. This allowed Joshua to crack his shell open a bit, transforming him from a polite, if not reserved boy into an open-hearted, warm man. Yet not everything about letting repressed feelings out was positive, as during this time Joshua gave his thoughts and feelings about marriage and romance any kind of attention for the first time. It wasn’t like Joshua hadn’t been feeling things before, yet they always were pushed away like the unwelcome guests he viewed them as. Yet Joshua had arrived to a point where he had to face the reality that they weren’t simple thoughts, that he would never develop feelings for a woman, get married and start a family like the good christian he was supposed to be. Yet even though he couldn’t fulfill these duties as a man, he swore to himself he wouldn’t stray as far as to pursue these sinful thoughts his mind cooked about other men. That temptation was one he wasn’t about to give into. [break][break]

After his studies Joshua returned to Valentine, where the old pastor of the church had come to an age where he was planning on retiring soon. In his late twenties and only recently graduated, Joshua wasn’t exactly the most obvious choice for the position, yet considering how active Joshua had been within the church before he left for his studies, it wasn’t exactly surprising either. Joshua slowly took on the role of the pastor of the Valentine congregation, effortlessly slipping into his new way of life. As the old pastor retired, Joshua took over the clergy house just across the road from the church. [break][break]

Though the transition to life back in Valentine was easy, it wasn’t exactly painless. One little pain point Joshua could never have foreseen was someone he remembered from his childhood. The reserved boy who had been attached to his mother every time Joshua had seen him in church. Though Hezekiah Kane was no longer a boy, but had grown to a man just like Joshua during his absence. And what a man he had turned into. Slowly grabbing Joshua’s attention, the crush he developed for Hezekiah turned into something he hadn’t experienced before. Just like with every silly little crush he had experienced before, Joshua ignored his silly little feelings. But the way he pined for the man only seemed to grow into something desperate, his heart yearning while his mind grew bitter. It didn’t help that Hezekiah was working as the church cantor, which evidently meant that the two had to work closely together. [break][break]

For the most part, Joshua has been living quite the uninteresting life since he moved back to Valentine. He has been acting as the only pastor in the small congregation of Valentine church, as well as repressing the feelings he has been harboring for Hezekiah for the past two decades. Joshua tries to keep himself busy in order to occupy his mind, just so he doesn’t have space for any kinds of thoughts about how lonely and miserable he truly feels. It hasn’t been exactly tough to keep himself occupied, as he has quite a lot to do, yet always at the end of the day he has to return back to the large empty house, facing the deafening silence. Perhaps he should get a cat, maybe it could heal everything Joshua has repressed throughout his life.[break]