A popular travel post brings customers to a village trail. A tea seller discovers that welcoming them also changes her neighbours’ daily lives.
01Read the Arabic story
حِينَ اكْتَشَفَ السُّيَّاحُ مَسَارَ الْمَشْيِ فِي قَرْيَتِنَا
نَشَرَ زَائِرٌ صُورَةً لِمَسَارِ الْمَشْيِ الَّذِي يَمُرُّ بِقَرْيَتِنَا، وَوَصَفَهُ بِأَنَّهُ مَكَانٌ لَا يَعْرِفُهُ أَحَدٌ. ضَحِكْتُ مُنْدَهِشَةً عِنْدَمَا قَرَأْتُ ذَلِكَ؛ فَنَحْنُ نَسْتَعْمِلُهُ كُلَّ يَوْمٍ لِلْوُصُولِ إِلَى الْحُقُولِ. بَعْدَ أُسْبُوعٍ، بَدَأَتْ مَجْمُوعَاتٌ تَصِلُ صَبَاحًا. وَضَعْتُ طَاوِلَةً أَمَامَ بَيْتِنَا لِبَيْعِ الشَّايِ، وَصَارَ أَخِي يُرَافِقُ الزُّوَّارَ إِلَى التَّلِّ مُقَابِلَ أَجْرٍ صَغِيرٍ.
فِي الْبِدَايَةِ، رَأَيْتُ الْأَكْوَابَ الْفَارِغَةَ دَلِيلًا عَلَى نَجَاحِي. ثُمَّ جَاءَتْ جَارَتُنَا سَلْمَى تَحْمِلُ كِيسًا مَمْلُوءًا بِهَا؛ جَمَعَتْهَا مِنْ حَدِيقَتِهَا. طَلَبَتْ إِغْلَاقَ الْمَسَارِ أَمَامَ الْغُرَبَاءِ. قُلْتُ إِنَّ بَعْضَ الزُّوَّارِ يَحْتَرِمُونَ الْمَكَانَ، وَإِنَّ الدَّخْلَ يُسَاعِدُنَا. لَمْ تُنْكِرْ ذَلِكَ، لَكِنَّهَا سَأَلَتْ إِنْ كَانَ عَلَيْهَا أَنْ تُنَظِّفَ حَدِيقَتَهَا كُلَّ مَسَاءٍ لِكَيْ أَرْبَحَ أَنَا.
دَعَوْتُهَا لِنَمْشِيَ حَتَّى التَّلِّ وَنَرَى أَمَاكِنَ الْمُشْكِلَاتِ. عِنْدَ بَيْتِنَا، انْتَظَرَ أَبِي خَلْفَ الزُّوَّارِ وَهُوَ يَدْفَعُ عَرَبَتَهُ. كَانَتْ طَاوِلَتِي تَشْغَلُ نِصْفَ الطَّرِيقِ. طَوَيْتُهَا، فَمَرَّ أَبِي دُونَ أَنْ يَطْلُبَ الْإِذْنَ مِنْ أَحَدٍ. أَكْمَلْنَا الْمَشْيَ، وَرَسَمْنَا خَرِيطَةً تُبَيِّنُ الْمَمَرَّ وَحُدُودَ الْحَدَائِقِ الَّتِي يَظُنُّهَا بَعْضُ النَّاسِ أَرْضًا مَفْتُوحَةً لِلْجَمِيعِ.
وَافَقَ جِيرَانٌ عَلَى وَضْعِ لَافِتَةِ تَرْحِيبٍ مَعَ الْخَرِيطَةِ، وَتَوَلَّيْتُ جَمْعَ أَكْوَابِي عِنْدَ الْمَدْخَلِ. طَلَبَ أَخِي مِنْ مُنَظِّمِي الرِّحْلَاتِ أَنْ يُخْبِرُوهُ بِمَوَاعِيدِهِمْ لِيَتَجَنَّبُوا الْوُصُولَ مَعًا. رَفَضَ أَحَدُهُمْ، لِأَنَّهُ لَا يُرِيدُ تَغْيِيرَ بَرْنَامَجِهِ. وَرَفَضَتْ سَلْمَى كِتَابَةَ كَلِمَةِ التَّرْحِيبِ بِيَدِهَا، مَعَ أَنَّهَا سَاعَدَتْنَا فِي تَصْحِيحِ حُدُودِ حَدِيقَتِهَا عَلَى الْخَرِيطَةِ. لَمْ نَطْلُبْ مِنْهَا أَنْ تُوَافِقَ عَلَى كُلِّ شَيْءٍ.
فِي نِهَايَةِ الْأُسْبُوعِ، بِعْتُ الشَّايَ مِنْ نَافِذَةِ الْبَيْتِ، فَكَانَ عَدَدُ الْمُشْتَرِينَ أَقَلَّ. وَصَلَتْ مَجْمُوعَتَانِ مَعًا رَغْمَ الْمُحَاوَلَاتِ، وَاضْطُرَّ أَخِي إِلَى الِانْتِظَارِ. أَرَدْتُ أَنْ أُعِيدَ الطَّاوِلَةَ إِلَى مَكَانِهَا الْقَدِيمِ، ثُمَّ رَأَيْتُ سَلْمَى تَمُرُّ بِسَلَّتِهَا دُونَ أَنْ تَتَوَقَّفَ. تَرَكْتُ الطَّاوِلَةَ مَطْوِيَّةً، وَفَتَحْتُ دَفْتَرَ الْحِسَابَاتِ لِأَرَى إِنْ كَانَ الْبَيْعُ مِنَ النَّافِذَةِ يَسْتَحِقُّ الِاسْتِمْرَارَ.
Show English translationHide English translation
A visitor posted a photo of the walking trail that passes through our village, describing it as a place nobody knew. I laughed in surprise when I read that: we use it every day to reach the fields. A week later, groups started arriving in the mornings. I put a table outside our house to sell tea, and my brother began accompanying visitors to the hill for a small fee.
At first, I saw the empty cups as a sign of my success. Then our neighbour Salma arrived carrying a bag full of them; she had collected them from her garden. She asked for the trail to be closed to outsiders. I said some visitors respected the place and that the income helped us. She did not deny this, but asked whether she had to clean her garden every evening so that I could make money.
I invited her to walk with me to the hill and see where the problems were. At our house, my father waited behind visitors while pushing his cart. My table was taking up half the path. I folded it, and my father passed without having to ask anyone’s permission. We continued walking and drew a map showing the path and the boundaries of gardens that some people thought were land open to everyone.
Some neighbours agreed to put up a welcome sign with the map, and I took responsibility for collecting my cups at the entrance. My brother asked trip organisers to tell him their schedules so they could avoid arriving together. One refused because he did not want to change his programme. Salma also refused to write the welcome message herself, although she helped us correct her garden’s boundaries on the map. We did not ask her to agree to everything.
At the weekend, I sold tea from the house window, and there were fewer buyers. Two groups arrived together despite our efforts, and my brother had to wait. I wanted to put the table back in its old place, then saw Salma passing with her basket without stopping. I left the table folded and opened the accounts notebook to see whether selling from the window was worth continuing.
02Useful words from the story
| Arabic in the story | Meaning here |
|---|---|
| لِمَسَارِ الْمَشْيِ | of the walking trail |
| الْحُقُولِ | the fields |
| مُقَابِلَ أَجْرٍ صَغِيرٍ | for a small fee |
| دَلِيلًا عَلَى نَجَاحِي | a sign of my success |
| أَمَامَ الْغُرَبَاءِ | to outsiders (when closing access) |
| نِصْفَ الطَّرِيقِ | half the path |
| لَافِتَةِ تَرْحِيبٍ | a welcome sign |
| بِمَوَاعِيدِهِمْ | of their schedules |
| مَطْوِيَّةً | folded |
| دَفْتَرَ الْحِسَابَاتِ | the accounts notebook |
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
- An economic opportunity can impose work and inconvenience on neighbours who do not share its income.
- Salma helps improve a boundary map without endorsing the whole plan; cooperation can leave disagreement intact.
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 سَأَلَتْ
Notice how lakinnaha introduces Salma’s objection without denying the income’s benefit.
Arabic Relative Pronouns: Joining Ideas with Alladhi and Allati
لِمَسَارِ الْمَشْيِ الَّذِي يَمُرُّ بِقَرْيَتِنَا
Follow alladhi to connect the walking trail with its location through the village.
