Terrible but true. It was just the opposite with Joseph. He was an oasis in which others found themselves growing and their lives fruitful. People who gathered around Joseph found their spirits lifted and their faces brightened and their load lightened. God's people are everywhere called to be salt and light and leaven.
Salt forestalls putrefaction and brings out hidden flavour.
Light dispels mildew, the foul-smelling fungus that ruins anything kept in the dank. Salt, light and leaven aren't dramatic items. As undramatic as they are, however, they are needed if others are to find their lives lightened and brightened and eased. Joseph was a good person to be around, for those who kept company with him found their lives bettered in every way. Regardless of where he was, but especially when he was in Egypt, in all circumstances Joseph knew who he was.