Rashid trusts the shop’s familiar arrangement. Giving Hanaa the ordering ledger tests whether he can share work without requiring a copy of his own habits.
01Read the Arabic story
صَاحِبُ الْمَحَلِّ الَّذِي تَعَلَّمَ التَّفْوِيضَ
كَانَ رَاشِدٌ يَطْلُبُ بَضَائِعَ مَحَلِّ الْقِرْطَاسِيَّةِ بِنَفْسِهِ، وَيَعُدُّ مَعْرِفَتَهُ بِأَمَاكِنِهَا جُزْءًا مِنْ مَعْرِفَتِهِ بِزَبَائِنِهِ. حِينَ نَقَلَتْ هَنَاءُ الدَّفَاتِرَ مِنْ رَفٍّ إِلَى آخَرَ، أَعَادَهَا قَبْلَ فَتْحِ الْمَحَلِّ. لَمْ يَسْأَلْهَا لِمَاذَا نَقَلَتْهَا؛ فَقَدْ بَدَا لَهُ أَنَّ تَغْيِيرَ التَّرْتِيبِ تَمْرِينٌ عَلَى نِسْيَانِ مَا تَعَلَّمَهُ خِلَالَ عِشْرِينَ سَنَةً.
طَلَبَتْ هَنَاءُ أَنْ تَتَوَلَّى طَلَبِيَّةَ الْأُسْبُوعِ، ضِمْنَ عَدَدِ الْحُزَمِ الْمُتَّفَقِ عَلَيْهِ. وَافَقَ، وَسَمَحَ لَهَا بِتَرْتِيبِ رَفٍّ وَاحِدٍ أَيْضًا لِأُسْبُوعٍ وَاحِدٍ فَقَطْ. وَسَلَّمَهَا قَلَمَهُ الْأَخْضَرَ، ثُمَّ وَقَفَ خَلْفَهَا يُمْلِي الْأَسْمَاءَ. أَشَارَتْ إِلَى صَفْحَةٍ فَارِغَةٍ وَسَأَلَتْ: إِذَا كُنْتَ سَتَكْتُبُ كُلَّ شَيْءٍ بِصَوْتِكَ، فَمَا الَّذِي سَأَتَوَلَّاهُ؟ تَرَكَ الدَّفْتَرَ الَّذِي يَبْقَى قُرْبَ الْبَابِ، وَخَرَجَ لِيَتَسَلَّمَ صُنْدُوقًا.
عِنْدَ وُصُولِ الطَّلَبِيَّةِ، نَقَصَتْ حُزْمَةٌ مِنَ الدَّفَاتِرِ الْكَبِيرَةِ. أَرَادَ أَنْ يَسْتَعِيدَ الدَّفْتَرَ فَوْرًا، لَكِنَّ هَنَاءَ أَرَتْهُ عِبَارَتَهُ الْقَدِيمَةَ: كَالْمَرَّةِ السَّابِقَةِ. كَانَ يَفْهَمُ مِنْهَا عَدَدًا لَمْ يَكْتُبْهُ. أَمَّا الدَّفَاتِرُ الصَّغِيرَةُ فَبِيعَتْ بِسُرْعَةٍ بَعْدَ أَنْ جَمَعَتْهَا هَنَاءُ حَسَبَ الْحَجْمِ، لَا اسْمِ الْمَصْنَعِ. وَلَمْ تَكُنْ حُزْمَةٌ نَاقِصَةٌ كَافِيَةً لِتَفْسِيرِ النَّتِيجَتَيْنِ.
كَتَبَا الْعَدَدَ كَامِلًا، وَاتَّفَقَا عَلَى مُرَاجَعَةِ الْقَائِمَةِ قَبْلَ إِرْسَالِهَا. اضْطُرَّ رَاشِدٌ إِلَى الِاعْتِذَارِ لِزَبُونٍ وَانْتِظَارِ التَّسْلِيمِ التَّالِي، فَلَمْ يَكُنِ التَّجْرِيبُ بِلَا ثَمَنٍ. وَحِينَ سَأَلَتْهُ هَنَاءُ إِنْ كَانَ عَلَيْهَا إِعَادَةُ الرُّفُوفِ، قَالَ إِنَّهُ يُرِيدُ رُؤْيَةَ أُسْبُوعٍ آخَرَ. لَمْ تَعُدِ الْمُرَاجَعَةُ تَعْنِي أَنْ يَكْتُبَ هُوَ الْقَائِمَةَ ثُمَّ يَطْلُبَ مِنْهَا نَسْخَهَا.
فِي الصَّبَاحِ وَجَدَ بِطَاقَةَ سِعْرٍ خَاطِئَةً فَوْقَ الدَّفَاتِرِ، فَصَحَّحَهَا وَتَرَكَ الرَّفَّ كَمَا هُوَ. سَأَلَهُ زَبُونٌ عَنْ مَكَانِ نَوْعٍ مُعَيَّنٍ، فَتَوَقَّفَ قَلِيلًا قَبْلَ أَنْ يُجِيبَ. وَمَدَّ يَدَهُ إِلَى الْقَلَمِ الْأَخْضَرِ حِينَ فُتِحَ الدَّفْتَرُ، ثُمَّ وَضَعَهُ بَيْنَهُ وَبَيْنَ هَنَاءَ. بَقِيَ عَلَيْهِ أَنْ يُرَاجِعَ الطَّلَبِيَّةَ؛ أَمَّا الصَّفْحَةُ فَلَمْ تَكُنْ قَدْ كُتِبَتْ بَعْدُ.
Show English translationHide English translation
Rashid ordered the stationery shop’s stock himself and considered knowing where things were part of knowing his customers. When Hanaa moved the notebooks from one shelf to another, he put them back before opening the shop. He did not ask why she had moved them: to him, changing the arrangement seemed like an exercise in forgetting what he had learnt over twenty years.
Hanaa asked to handle the week’s order within the agreed number of packs. He agreed, also allowing her to rearrange one shelf for just one week. He handed her his green pencil, then stood behind her dictating the names. Pointing to a blank page, she asked, “If you are going to write everything with your voice, what exactly will I be handling?” He left the ledger that stayed near the door and went out to receive a box.
When the order arrived, a pack of large notebooks was missing. He wanted to take the ledger back immediately, but Hanaa showed him his old phrase: “same as last time.” He understood it to mean a number he had never written down. Meanwhile, the small notebooks sold quickly after she grouped them by size rather than manufacturer. A single missing pack was not enough to explain both results.
They wrote the number in full and agreed to check the list before sending it. Rashid had to apologise to a customer and wait for the next delivery, so experimenting came at a cost. When Hanaa asked whether she should restore the shelves, he said he wanted to see another week. Checking no longer meant that he wrote the list and then asked her to copy it.
The next morning, he found an incorrect price tag above the notebooks, corrected it and left the shelf as it was. A customer asked where a particular type was, and he paused briefly before answering. When the ledger was opened, he reached for the green pencil, then placed it between himself and Hanaa. He still had to check the order; the page, however, had not yet been written.
02Useful words from the story
| Arabic in the story | Meaning here |
|---|---|
| بَضَائِعَ | stock; goods |
| الْقِرْطَاسِيَّةِ | stationery |
| طَلَبِيَّةَ الْأُسْبُوعِ | the week’s order |
| يُمْلِي الْأَسْمَاءَ | dictating the names |
| حُزْمَةٌ | a pack |
| حَسَبَ الْحَجْمِ | by size |
| لِتَفْسِيرِ النَّتِيجَتَيْنِ | to explain the two outcomes |
| مُرَاجَعَةِ الْقَائِمَةِ | checking the list |
| نَسْخَهَا | copying it |
| بِطَاقَةَ سِعْرٍ | a price tag |
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
- The missing pack and faster sales prevent a simple verdict on Hanaa’s method.
- Rashid’s final corrections preserve his responsibility while leaving space for a different way of working.
Explore the Arabic in this story
Related grammar and vocabularyOpen Araqick guides connected to this story.
Lam in Arabic: How to Say “Did Not”
لَمْ يَسْأَلْهَا لِمَاذَا نَقَلَتْهَا
Notice lam denying that Rashid asked about the first change.
Arabic Relative Pronouns: Joining Ideas with Alladhi and Allati
الدَّفْتَرَ الَّذِي يَبْقَى قُرْبَ الْبَابِ
Read alladhi linking the masculine singular ledger to where it stays.
