As told by Mr Mohammed Aziz (26 years)
An interpreter at BDRCS and a senior private teacher
Kutupalong Refugee Camp, Cox’s Bazaar, Bangladesh
There was once a king who was happy and full of a zest for life. Not only was he known to be good to his native subjects, but he was also kind and hospitable to foreigners visiting from faraway lands. He was a humble king and ensured that his kingdom was healthy and prosperous for his people.
True to his character, he fell in love and married a girl from a destitute family. They lived a very happy life in the royal palace.
One day, a blind beggar came to the king and begged for the king’s help. The king offered him an abundance of food to eat and then told him to go back to the town, giving some encouraging words to the beggar about his future.
Some time later, the beggar returned to beg from the king, even though he had already been given plenty of food to eat before. Again, the king offered some more food and sent him on his way.
But again and again the beggar returned to beg for more from the king, and each time the king would give the beggar food to take with him. Tiring of the beggar’s behavior, and herself coming from a life of poverty, the king’s wife had an idea to end his begging.
The king’s wife suggested that they put a gold nugget at the main gate of the palace, thinking that if the beggar was only pretending to be blind, he would certainly snatch it up. Reluctantly, the king agreed to the plan, deciding that he would use the gold that he was planning to use for a great project instead for this purpose. On a day that they thought the beggar may arrive, they placed a small gold nugget by the palace gate.
Later that day, the blind beggar approached the palace, as expected. Unexpectedly, the beggar was traveling with a guardian who easily spotted the gold and snatched it up and put it in his pocket. As usual, the beggar asked the king for food, and the king obliged, satisfied that beggar was in fact blind.
But later, when the king checked to see if the gold was still there, he was shocked to see that it had vanished! He was so upset, knowing that he had lost so much gold for such an insignificant reason.