Saul’s lesson by Imad Amozlouf
Saul was a child who lived surrounded by comforts and privileges. His father was an expert surgeon and his mother a successful writer, so the family lived in a huge house with a garden, a swimming pool and a garage in which two high cars slept. At eleven years old, he lacked for nothing: he dressed in the latest fashions, he had a private room full of games, and on the wall of his bedroom hung a television so large that it looked more like a movie screen.
Despite his great fortune, Saul spent the day frowning and displaying such a listless demeanor that he seemed angry with the world. Lately he couldn’t stand getting up early and hated having to go to school five days a week, especially because his teacher seemed like an unbearable man and he talked less and less with his classmates. Why pretend that
his topics of conversation seemed interesting to him? As if this were not enough, not a single subject attracted his attention. He wasted his time looking at the shrews and opening his mouth to let out loud yawns every few minutes.
If the weather was good, when the school day ended at three o’clock, Saúl would cross the street carrying his backpack and walk a short distance until he reached the Park of the Almendros. It was his favorite place to unwind from math problems and the long list of country capitals that forced him to memorize. Once there, he used to sit on a wooden bench from which he could contemplate a beautiful panorama of the grove and the heart-shaped lake where a few families of ducklings always splashed.
It happened that, one of those afternoons, he approached his usual bench, took a seat, and when he looked ahead he discovered that a few meters away they had placed a white marble statue. It caught his attention, because it represented the figure of a boy his age, barefoot and covered in rags, who seemed to be staring at him.
– What a depressing statue! They could have put the figure of a Roman prince or goddess instead of a ragged beggar.
As he spoke these words, he heard a child’s voice.
– Do you really think I’m just a piece of stone that a sculptor has shaped?
Saúl jumped and his heart began to beat at full speed. After a few seconds of bewilderment, he fanned himself with the palm of his hand and tried to compose himself. The heat of those early summer days was making him delirious!
What a scare! For a moment I thought the statue was speaking to me. I should better go!
He was getting to his feet when he heard the same voice again. He was to scared to remember that he had the Vr glasses on, after running for a few seconds he crashed into the wall and the glasses broke he realized that he didn’t have to complain about everything but to enjoy what he has.