Mazin’s colourful timetable runs perfectly when he tests it alone. A participant’s ordinary question reveals a step his rehearsal has missed.
01Read the Arabic story
الْخُطَّةُ الْمُتْقَنَةُ الَّتِي لَا تَتْرُكُ وَقْتًا لِلِاسْتِمَاعِ
كَانَ جَدْوَلُ تَبَادُلِ الْكُتُبِ مُكْتَمِلًا قَبْلَ أَنْ يَصِلَ أَصْحَابُهَا. خَصَّصَ مَازِنٌ لَوْنًا لِكُلِّ مَرْحَلَةٍ: تَسْجِيلٌ، ثُمَّ عَرْضٌ قَصِيرٌ، ثُمَّ تَبَادُلٌ وَتَرْتِيبٌ. فِي قَاعَةِ الْمَرْكَزِ، كَانَتِ الطَّاوِلَةُ وَاسِعَةً، وَظَنَّ أَنَّ الْمَكَانَ لَا يَحْتَاجُ إِلَى تَعْدِيلٍ. وَضَعَ صُنْدُوقًا مِنَ الْوَرَقِ الْمُقَوَّى إِلَى جَانِبِ كِتَابَيْنِ لِيُجَرِّبَ مَسَارَ الْحَرَكَةِ. انْتَهَى كُلُّ شَيْءٍ فِي الْوَقْتِ الَّذِي حَدَّدَهُ، لِأَنَّهُ تَوَلَّى وَحْدَهُ جَمِيعَ الْأَدْوَارِ.
فِي اللِّقَاءِ التَّحْضِيرِيِّ، رَفَعَتْ هِنْدٌ يَدَهَا حِينَ بَلَغَ شَرْحُهُ خُطْوَةَ التَّبَادُلِ. سَأَلَتْ مَتَى يَسْتَطِيعُ الْمُشَارِكُ أَنْ يَتَصَفَّحَ كِتَابًا قَبْلَ اخْتِيَارِهِ. أَجَابَ بِأَنَّ الْعَنَاوِينَ سَتَكُونُ وَاضِحَةً عَلَى الطَّاوِلَةِ، ثُمَّ انْتَقَلَ إِلَى اللَّوْنِ التَّالِي. لَمْ تَكُنِ الْمُدَّةُ الْمُخَصَّصَةُ لِلْأَسْئِلَةِ قَدْ حَلَّتْ، وَكَانَ يُرِيدُ أَنْ يَلْتَزِمَ بِجَدْوَلِهِ حَتَّى فِي شَرْحِهِ.
عَادَتْ هِنْدٌ إِلَى سُؤَالِهَا بَعْدَ الْعَرْضِ. فَتَحَتْ أَحَدَ الْكِتَابَيْنِ وَقَرَأَتْ فِقْرَةً، ثُمَّ قَلَّبَتْ صَفَحَاتِهِ لِتَرَى إِنْ كَانَ يُنَاسِبُهَا. شَاهَدَ مَازِنٌ الْعَقْرَبَ يَتَقَدَّمُ عَلَى سَاعَتِهِ. وَكَانَتْ بَقِيَّةُ الْفَرِيقِ تَنْتَظِرُ انْتِهَاءَ اللِّقَاءِ لِتَرْتِيبِ الْقَاعَةِ. لَمْ تَكُنْ تُبْطِئُ الْمَشْرُوعَ عَمْدًا؛ كَانَتْ تَفْعَلُ الشَّيْءَ الَّذِي يَدْعُو إِلَيْهِ، وَلَكِنَّ جَدْوَلَهُ لَمْ يَحْسِبْ لَهُ وَقْتًا.
شَطَبَ فَقْرَةَ الْعَرْضِ الِافْتِتَاحِيِّ، وَتَرَكَ مَكَانَهَا لِلتَّصَفُّحِ وَالْأَسْئِلَةِ. اعْتَرَضَ زَمِيلٌ أَعَدَّ كَلِمَةً عَنْ فَوَائِدِ الْقِرَاءَةِ، فَلَمْ يَكْتَفِ مَازِنٌ بِالْقَوْلِ إِنَّ التَّغْيِيرَ ضَرُورِيٌّ. اعْتَذَرَ عَنْ إِلْغَاءِ كَلِمَتِهِ، وَاتَّفَقَا عَلَى وَضْعِهَا فِي وَرَقَةٍ مُنْفَصِلَةٍ. بَقِيَ الْجَدْوَلُ مُلَوَّنًا، لَكِنَّ أَحَدَ مُرَبَّعَاتِهِ صَارَ يَحْمِلُ خَطًّا أَسْوَدَ فَوْقَ عُنْوَانٍ أَنِيقٍ.
يَوْمَ التَّبَادُلِ، احْتَاجَ بَعْضُ الْمُشَارِكِينَ إِلَى وَقْتٍ أَطْوَلَ، وَانْتَهَى آخَرُونَ سَرِيعًا. تَأَخَّرَ التَّرْتِيبُ عَشْرَ دَقَائِقَ، فَحَمَلَ مَازِنٌ الصُّنْدُوقَ مَعَ الزَّمِيلِ الَّذِي أَعَدَّ الْكَلِمَةَ. طَوَى الْجَدْوَلَ وَاحْتَفَظَ بِهِ لِلْمَرَّةِ الْقَادِمَةِ. لَمْ يَكْتُبْ فِي أَسْفَلِهِ أَنَّ الْخُطَّةَ فَشِلَتْ؛ كَتَبَ سُؤَالًا عَنِ الْخُطْوَةِ الَّتِي يَنْبَغِي أَنْ يُجَرِّبَهَا مَعَ غَيْرِهِ قَبْلَ أَنْ يُحَدِّدَ مُدَّتَهَا.
Show English translationHide English translation
The book-exchange timetable was complete before the books’ owners arrived. Mazin assigned a colour to each stage: registration, then a short presentation, then the exchange and tidying up. The table in the centre’s hall was spacious, and he thought the venue needed no alteration. He put a cardboard box beside two books to test the flow. Everything finished at the time he had set because he played all the roles himself.
At the preparatory meeting, Hind raised her hand when his explanation reached the exchange stage. She asked when a participant could browse a book before choosing it. He answered that the titles would be clearly visible on the table, then moved to the next colour. The allotted question period had not yet arrived, and he wanted to follow his timetable even while explaining it.
Hind returned to her question after the presentation. She opened one of the two books and read a paragraph, then turned its pages to see whether it suited her. Mazin watched the hand advance on his watch. The rest of the team was waiting for the meeting to end so they could arrange the hall. She was not deliberately slowing the project: she was doing the very thing it invited, but his timetable had allowed no time for it.
He crossed out the opening presentation and left its place for browsing and questions. A colleague who had prepared a talk about the benefits of reading objected, so Mazin did not simply say the change was necessary. He apologised for cancelling the talk, and they agreed to put it on a separate sheet. The timetable remained colourful, but one square now bore a black line across an elegant heading.
On the exchange day, some participants needed longer while others finished quickly. Tidying up was ten minutes late, so Mazin carried the box with the colleague who had prepared the talk. He folded the timetable and kept it for next time. He did not write at its foot that the plan had failed; he wrote a question about which step he should test with someone else before deciding its duration.
02Useful words from the story
| Arabic in the story | Meaning here |
|---|---|
| خَصَّصَ | allocated |
| لِيُجَرِّبَ | to test |
| وَاضِحَةً | clearly visible |
| الْمُخَصَّصَةُ | allotted |
| الْعَقْرَبَ | the hand of the watch |
| عَمْدًا | deliberately |
| شَطَبَ | crossed out |
| لِلتَّصَفُّحِ | for browsing |
| مُرَبَّعَاتِهِ | its squares |
| مُدَّتَهَا | its duration |
03Check your understanding
Choose one answer per question. Follow the details, shifts in perspective and limits of what the characters know. Open the English support when needed.
What to remember
- Mazin’s solo test misses the time a participant needs to judge a book’s suitability.
- The revised timetable retains structure while sacrificing a prepared opening talk and allowing uneven reading times.
Explore the Arabic in this story
Related grammar and vocabularyOpen Araqick guides connected to this story.
Kana in Arabic: Was and Were
كَانَ جَدْوَلُ تَبَادُلِ الْكُتُبِ مُكْتَمِلًا
Use kana with a nominative noun phrase and accusative adjective for a past state.
Arabic Relative Pronouns: Joining Ideas with Alladhi and Allati
الْخُطْوَةِ الَّتِي يَنْبَغِي أَنْ يُجَرِّبَهَا مَعَ غَيْرِهِ
Link the definite feminine step to its description with allati.
