Honors Students Association Newsletter

10-11 / 24

10 11
Stories from
the Cultural Awareness Team
Once there was an elderly man who lived in a small, dilapidated old house with his only son.
The son was very sick and the treatment for his illness was very expensive.
One glorious morning as the earth was basking in golden sunshine, the poor man started his daily task of
collecting empty water bottles, which he would clean and fill with cool fresh water. He would then walk
around the streets in hope of selling some of them to get the money needed to treat his sick son.
Under the hot rays of the sun, as the old man dragged his aching tired feet, gloomily watching the parents
playing with their children, he thought sadly of his sick son lying on a broken bed and eating scraps of food
discarded on the ground. The man then started moaning, envisioning his sick son getting worse and worse
and made a promise to himself that he would save his son, even if it would cost him his own life.
As the man was out selling his water bottles, a little girl was running heedlessly around in the streets
without caring about what might happen to her. Suddenly the old man saw a truck heading down
the road, speeding towards the child. Without hesitation, the man threw down the bag containing his
bottles and the day’s much needed earnings for his son’s treatment. He ran to the child to save her
from being hit by the truck. He quickly pushed the girl to the other side of the road where there were no
cars or trucks. The poor man fell to the ground as the truck hit him, causing an injury to his right leg.
He then started stumbling towards the crying shaken little girl, scooped her into his arms and tried to
comfort her as if she were his son.
The old man smiled at the little girl, hiding the sorrow in his heart. He then remembered his bag,
the water, and the money needed for his son’s treatment. He clutched the girl and started limping
anxiously as fast as he could towards his bag, his heart pounding as if his heartbeats were also racing
against time. The poor man reached the other side only to realize that his bag had been stolen; it had
disappeared without a trace. He started crying out and weeping bitterly, flailing himself and tearing at
his hair as he remembered his sick son.
All his sorrow was consumed in wails and tears as the girl looked on in astonishment. He had risked his
son’s health to save a life of a girl he had no responsibility for. Clasping the girl’s hand, the man kept his
head down out of fear that others would see his weakness.
Just then the girl’s parents came running towards them; they embraced their daughter tearfully with
loud cries. He watched them with a sad smile. The girls’ parents asked the old man to explain what
had happened; he told them how the girl had been playing in the path of the truck so he had run
across the road to rescue her. The girl’s mother started to cry.
Tenderness is True Wealth
by Nada Al Rayash
The father embraced the old man, thanking him and saying: “You have saved my daughter’s life, and
this is a big favor; in order to repay you I will treat your leg for free”. The old man was very happy
to learn that the little girl’s father was a successful and well-known surgeon so he replied: “If you
really want to thank me, and then please treat my ill son, you will be saving two lives and I will never
forget your great kindness.”
The doctor gladly accepted and started treatment sessions for the old man’s sick son; these continued
until he had recovered completely. The son grew up. He attended school, went on to become a
successful and well-educated man, and he recompensed his father for all the hardship he had gone
through for his sake. Together they left all their sorrows behind and lived a happy life.
These stories were written by FP students and edited by FPDE teachers. The team is now recruiting
illustrators for a book that has 20 stories. All stories were written by FP students and now we want FP
students to illustrate them. If you can draw high quality illustrations this semester, please join the Cultural
Awareness Team by sending your complete name, QU ID number, and QU email address to Mondher
, Randy or Charles ).
We hope to publish our book of Qatari stories in 2018 with FP stories and illustrations!