I envision Monroe as a great king. He is in royal robes and headdress and is being carried by his loyal servants on a golden litter. There are royal fan-bearers to keep him cool in the heat of the desert. He eats the finest food and drinks the finest drinks in his grand palace. He hires architects and artists to design the pyramid that will contain his royal tomb and that will be built by Egyptian laborers.
Monroe snaps his fingers in front of my face as I stare at the mummy. I tell Monroe about my imagining him as an ancient royal king and he laughs at the idea of himself as an Egyptian monarch. He tells me that I should imagine him as the king's personal scientist, teaching him about measurements of time and distance, astronomy and medicine. He also tells me that I should imagine him with his face lobster red because that is what it would look like after five minutes in the desert sun.