Tolerance

   Once upon a time, there lived a farmer who had a small piece of land. His name was Karim. He was a kind and good-natured person. He lived in a hut with his wife and children and earned a livelihood by selling crops. Karim loved to help others. Whenever someone fell ill or needed something, Karim was there to help that person. If someone died in the village, Karim assisted the family members of the deceased person in whichever he could. There seemed to be none who hated him. Who appeared to be a loved one and all. 

   But there was one person, Jamal, one of his neighbors, who hated Karim, he was lazy by nature. So, he couldn't grow as many crops as Karim did. Hence every year he saw Karim earning more profit than him, he become more jealous. One year what happened that Jamal in his utmost hatred, set fire to the crops of Karim. But luckily one of the neighbors come to help Karim and much of the crops were saved from being destroyed. Karim thought who could do it? He tried to find out the direction the fire had started from He suspected that Jamal could do it, but he was not sure. Therefore, he decided not to take any action unless he see himself as the culprit doing it again.

   A few days later, Karim was awakened by the loud ba voices of neighbors. He went out and saw a crowd in front of Jamal's hut. He was told that Jamal's son was bitten poisonous snack. The village doctor did not have an injection for a snack bite. Karim knew what he had to do. He took Jamal and his son in his tractor trolley to the town hospital that was 5 miles away, where the doctor saved his life. A day later, Jamal went to Karim's hut and began to weep bitterly. He confessed that it was he who set his crops on fire, but he was surprised when Karim told him that he knew about it all. You! knew I had set fire to your crops? And still, you helped me save my son's life?"Asked the astonished Jamal. 

   Karim nodded and said, " I did what I knew was right. Could you do wrong just because you had done so?" Jamal stood up and embraced Karim. Both men were in tears and so were the others who stood by them. From that day, Jamal changed himself. Within a year, he was able to produce more crops through his hard work. When the others asked him how he had changed so much, he only replied," it was the goodness and love of Karim that brought a change in my life.

By Hafsa Murad

Soggat Academy Kallag