Zain lives in Egypt with his parents and little sister, Sara.
He works with his father on his vegetable farm during the day and goes
to school late in the evening.
Sara doesn’t go to school because her legs are weak and she cannot
walk. Her mother teaches her prayers, holy verses, and makes her sit on the
kitchen platform while she cooks. Later, she massages Sara’s legs with olive
oil and hopes that she would walk one day. The doctors say that she must
practice every day but Sara is afraid that she might lose her balance and fall.
Every morning, Zain wakes up early, has his breakfast and goes to the
farm with lunchboxes laden on the back of his young donkey. There he greets his
father and begins working. He weeds the vegetable patches, plants seeds, and
harvests the produce ready for picking. At lunchtime, he and the donkey fetch
drinking water from the well.
Zain likes to sit on the donkey’s back and pretend that he is riding a
horse. It is a game they play every day. On the way to the well, there is a narrow
irrigation canal. Zain has taught the donkey to jump over this canal. The
donkey likes this game because Zain gives him a treat afterwards.
On Sara’s birthday, Zain puts up a show with his donkey. The donkey
jumps over hurdles and gallops away at Zain’s bidding. Sara claps her hands
joyfully. Sara, too, wants to practice to walk and run like the donkey. Zain promises to help her.
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| Art: Irene D'Cruz, 75, India |
Zain’s father and a few elders from the village think it is remarkable
for a donkey to gallop like a horse. It is not easy to get a donkey to do
something it doesn’t want to do because donkeys are stubborn animals.
Zain’s cousin takes pictures of the show and posts it to his friends.
In a few days, reporters from all over the world descend on their little
village and Zain and his donkey become world-famous.
(A story by Aashoo inspired by the true
story of the Egyptian boy, Ahmed Ayman, who taught his donkey to gallop and
jump. Protected by Copyright, February, 2016.)
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