Printable version
The clock on the wall above
Shashi's desk said 10pm. He had been at his desk since 8am. 'I'll be
here
all night', he thought to himself. 'Why do I do this? I have no life. I
hardly ever see my children. I haven't been on vacation for three
years. Am I happy?... But life isn't about happiness, is it?
it's about duty
and it's about
responsibility.'
Shashi loosened
his necktie and continued working. 'Perhaps I'll go
home
in half an hour,' he said to himself.
Anil was sitting on a flat
rock on the hillside. The crescent
moon
was high in the sky, and the
sky was full of stars. He knew all their names. Below him, scattered
among the rocks were his goats. They were roaming
around,
as they did every night, searching for grass to eat.
'How can I change my life?' he asked himself. 'There must be more to
life than goats. I need an education. If I had an education, I could
get a good job in the city. I could buy fine things for my wife and
children. Where is my life going?'
When Shashi finally left his office, the time was almost eleven pm. He drove out of the city in his BMW and into the hills that separated the city from his home town. It was not a full moon, but it was light enough to see a herd of goats wandering across the hills. 'The life of a goatherd must be so free, so peaceful. So much fresh air and simple pleasures,' he thought. Shashi's life seemed to have no pleasure anymore and no connection with the real world.
Anil looked down at the expensive car that was driving along the road through the hills. Its headlights shining so brightly. He imagined the wealthy driver was returning from his important job in the city to his beautiful house surrounded by fruit trees and ponds. It must be so exciting to live such a life. Perhaps he would have to wait for the next life to experience such riches, but the next life seemed such a long time to wait.
One of Anil's goats stopped chewing grass and looked up at him. 'It must be wonderful to be a man,' the goat thought. It then lowered its head and continued in its search for tasty grass. Tonight, there wasn't much good grass. Thinking was difficult for the goat, and soon it forgot what it had thought. Then it looked down at the road and saw the car was stopping, and remembered there was beautiful grass the other side of the hills in a place it could never go.
Shashi stopped his BMW at the
side of the road and got out to light a cigarette. Smoking was a bad
habit and his wife wouldn't
let him smoke in the house. In fact, she
wouldn't let him do anything. Not for a long time. Anil saw the car
stop and ran down the hillside towards the man who had got out. 'Hello,
sir. Good evening, sir. Are you okay? Can I help you, sir?' he asked.
Shashi smiled but there were tears in his eyes. 'I am okay,' he said,
'I... I... just don't know where I am going.'
'Sir. The town is to the north. Please continue driving, it is easy to
find.' said Anil.
'I know where the town is my friend, but I don't know where I am going.'
'Anil looked at him and nodded.
He understood what he meant. 'Sir, I feel exactly
the same,' he said.
Then suddenly, the men heard a noise coming from the car. They turned
to see one of Anil's goats sitting in the driver's seat of the
BMW. 'Sir,
I am so sorry. I will pay to have it cleaned, I promise you.'
Shashi smiled at him and said, 'Don't worry my friend. Perhaps we all want to be somewhere else.'
Adjectives
flat:
Here meaning 'smooth and level. Without higher or lower parts'.
wealthy:
Rich. Having a lot of money and things.
Adverbs
brightly:
With a lot of light.
somewhere
else:
In another place.
Verbs
loosen:
To make more loose, less tight. For example a belt or tie.
be
scattered:
To be in many different places.
roam
around:
To move around from place to place with no plan.
separate:
To divide or cut into different parts.
wander:
To move slowly around from place to place with no plan.
shine:
To give off a strong light.
be
surrounded by:
To have another thing all around you.
chew:
To bite food many times before swallowing it.
lower:
To move something from a high place to a low place.
nod: To move your head forwards and
backwards to show that you agree with someone or understand what they
are saying.
Nouns
duty:
Something you have to do because everyone expects you to do it.
responsibility:
Something only you must do, or be blamed for if you don't do it.
a
crescent moon:
When the moon is almost dark, but it looks like a smile.
a
full moon:
When the moon is round with light from the sun.
a
herd:
A group of animals, such as cows, goats and elephants.
a
goatherd:
Someone who looks after a group of goats.
fresh
air:
Clean air.
a
pleasure:
Something that makes you feel happy and good.
a
connection:
Something that joins two things together.
riches:
Expensive things of high quality. Also meaning lots of money.
a
bad habit:
Something you do often, but it is bad for you.