A designer receives an offer from a former rival who once failed to acknowledge her contribution. Their meeting connects an old omission with future work.
01Read the Arabic story
عَرْضُ عَمَلٍ مِنْ مُنَافِسَتِي السَّابِقَةِ
تَعَرَّفَتْ سَلْمَى إِلَى اسْمِ مُرْسِلَةِ الرِّسَالَةِ قَبْلَ أَنْ تَقْرَأَ عُنْوَانَهَا. كَانَتْ مِنْ رَانِيَا، مُنَافِسَتِهَا السَّابِقَةِ فِي التَّصْمِيمِ، وَتَحْمِلُ عَرْضَ عَمَلٍ فِي مَكْتَبِهَا الْجَدِيدِ. قَبْلَ سَنَوَاتٍ، فَازَتْ رَانِيَا بِمُسَابَقَةٍ عَرَضَتْ فِيهَا مَشْرُوعًا بَدَأَ بِفِكْرَةٍ لِسَلْمَى. ذُكِرَ اسْمُ رَانِيَا وَحْدَهُ يَوْمَ الْجَائِزَةِ، وَلَمْ تُصَحِّحْ هِيَ ذَلِكَ، رَغْمَ أَنَّهُمَا عَمِلَتَا مَعًا فِي الْبِدَايَةِ.
كَانَتْ سَلْمَى تَحْتَاجُ إِلَى عَمَلٍ مُسْتَقِرٍّ، لَكِنَّهَا لَمْ تُرِدْ أَنْ يَبْدُوَ قَبُولُهَا كَأَنَّهُ إِقْرَارٌ بِأَنَّ الْمَاضِي لَمْ يَكُنْ مُهِمًّا. وَافَقَتْ عَلَى لِقَاءٍ، وَحَمَلَتْ مَعَهَا رَسْمَهَا الْأَوَّلَ لِلْمَشْرُوعِ الْقَدِيمِ. عِنْدَ دُخُولِ الْمَكْتَبِ، رَأَتْ شَهَادَةَ الْفَوْزِ عَلَى الْجِدَارِ. أَشَارَتْ إِلَيْهَا وَسَأَلَتْ رَانِيَا إِنْ كَانَ اسْمُهَا سَيَخْتَفِي مَرَّةً أُخْرَى عِنْدَمَا يَنْجَحُ الْعَمَلُ.
لَمْ تَقُلْ رَانِيَا إِنَّهَا نَسِيَتِ الْوَاقِعَةَ. قَالَتْ إِنَّهَا خَافَتْ يَوْمَهَا أَنْ يُضْعِفَ ذِكْرُ مُسَاهَمَةِ سَلْمَى قِيمَةَ فَوْزِهَا. أَضَافَتْ أَنَّ الْعَرْضَ الْجَدِيدَ لَيْسَ تَعْوِيضًا عَنْ سُكُوتِهَا، بَلْ إِنَّهَا تَحْتَاجُ إِلَى قُدْرَةِ سَلْمَى عَلَى تَحْوِيلِ الْأَفْكَارِ إِلَى تَفَاصِيلَ عَمَلِيَّةٍ. سَأَلَتْهَا سَلْمَى لِمَاذَا بَقِيَ وَصْفُ الْمَشْرُوعِ فِي مَوْقِعِهَا دُونَ ذِكْرٍ لِهَذِهِ الْمُسَاهَمَةِ.
فَتَحَتْ رَانِيَا الصَّفْحَةَ، وَاقْتَرَحَتْ إِضَافَةَ شُكْرٍ عَامٍّ. رَفَضَتْ سَلْمَى الْعِبَارَةَ، وَطَلَبَتْ وَصْفًا دَقِيقًا لِمَا أَنْجَزَتْهُ كُلٌّ مِنْهُمَا. رَاجَعَتَا الرُّسُومَ الْقَدِيمَةَ، وَكَتَبَتَا الْوَصْفَ مَعًا. ثُمَّ نَاقَشَتَا مَسْؤُولِيَّاتِ الْوَظِيفَةِ وَطَرِيقَةَ ذِكْرِ أَسْمَاءِ الْمُشَارِكِينَ. كَانَ الْحَدِيثُ أَبْطَأَ وَأَثْقَلَ مِمَّا تَوَقَّعَتْهُ رَانِيَا، لَكِنَّ سَلْمَى لَمْ تَعُدْ تُخْفِي أَسْئِلَتَهَا لِكَيْ تَبْدُوَ مُتَعَاوِنَةً.
بَعْدَ أَنْ قَرَأَتِ الصَّفْحَةَ الْمُعَدَّلَةَ وَشُرُوطَ الْعَمَلِ، قَبِلَتْ سَلْمَى الْعَرْضَ. لَمْ تَعُدَّ الِاتِّفَاقَ مُصَالَحَةً كَامِلَةً، وَظَلَّتْ شَهَادَةُ الْفَوْزِ تُزْعِجُهَا. فِي أَوَّلِ أُسْبُوعٍ، أَعَادَتْ رَانِيَا إِلَيْهَا تَصْمِيمًا مَعَ مُلَاحَظَاتٍ كَثِيرَةٍ. قَرَأَتْهَا سَلْمَى مَرَّتَيْنِ، ثُمَّ كَتَبَتْ جَوَابًا تَشْرَحُ فِيهِ لِمَاذَا سَتُغَيِّرُ جُزْءًا وَتُبْقِي جُزْءًا آخَرَ. تَرَكَتِ الرَّسْمَ الْقَدِيمَ فِي حَقِيبَتِهَا، وَحَمَلَتِ التَّصْمِيمَ الْجَدِيدَ إِلَى الِاجْتِمَاعِ.
Show English translationHide English translation
Salma recognised the sender’s name before reading the message’s subject. It was from Rania, her former rival in design, and contained a job offer at Rania’s new office. Years earlier, Rania had won a competition with a project that began with an idea of Salma’s. Only Rania’s name was mentioned on the day of the award, and she did not correct that, although they had worked together at the beginning.
Salma needed stable work, but did not want accepting to look like an admission that the past had not mattered. She agreed to a meeting and brought her first drawing for the old project. When she entered the office, she saw the winner’s certificate on the wall. She pointed to it and asked Rania whether her name would disappear again when the work succeeded.
Rania did not say she had forgotten the incident. She said she had feared that mentioning Salma’s contribution would diminish the value of her win. She added that the new offer was not compensation for her silence; she needed Salma’s ability to turn ideas into practical details. Salma asked why the project description on Rania’s website still contained no mention of that contribution.
Rania opened the page and suggested adding a general thank-you. Salma rejected the wording and asked for an exact description of what each of them had done. They reviewed the old drawings and wrote the description together. Then they discussed the job’s responsibilities and how contributors’ names would be included. The conversation was slower and more difficult than Rania had expected, but Salma no longer hid her questions to seem cooperative.
After reading the revised page and employment terms, Salma accepted the offer. She did not consider the agreement a complete reconciliation, and the winner’s certificate still bothered her. In the first week, Rania returned a design to her with many comments. Salma read them twice, then wrote a reply explaining why she would change one part and keep another. She left the old drawing in her bag and took the new design to the meeting.
02Useful words from the story
| Arabic in the story | Meaning here |
|---|---|
| مُنَافِسَتِهَا السَّابِقَةِ | her former rival |
| إِقْرَارٌ | an admission |
| شَهَادَةَ الْفَوْزِ | the winner’s certificate |
| مُسَاهَمَةِ سَلْمَى | Salma’s contribution |
| تَعْوِيضًا | compensation |
| تَفَاصِيلَ عَمَلِيَّةٍ | practical details |
| شُكْرٍ عَامٍّ | a general thank-you |
| الْمُعَدَّلَةَ | revised |
| مُصَالَحَةً كَامِلَةً | a complete reconciliation |
| مُلَاحَظَاتٍ كَثِيرَةٍ | many comments |
03Check your understanding
Choose one answer for each question. Use the Arabic text to distinguish facts, motives and supported inferences. Open the English support when needed.
What to remember
- Specific credit identifies each contribution more clearly than a general thank-you.
- Cooperation can begin before a grievance has completely faded; the final response preserves independent professional judgment.
Explore the Arabic in this story
Related grammar and vocabularyOpen Araqick guides connected to this story.
Lakinna and Lakin in Arabic: Two Patterns for But
لَكِنَّهَا لَمْ تُرِدْ
Follow lakinnaha as Salma’s need for work meets a concern about what acceptance would imply.
Arabic Past-Tense Endings: I Wrote, You Wrote and We Wrote
قَبِلَتْ سَلْمَى الْعَرْضَ
Recognise the feminine past form in Salma’s acceptance after the changes.
