ZAID THE LITTLE SLAVE

Little Zaid was crying his heart out, for he was far away from
his house and alone. Bandits had kidnapped him from his
family and taken him to a place that he did not know. They wanted
to earn money by selling him to the wealthy people.

Zaid was hungry, thirsty, and miserable for days. He got tired
waiting to be sold in the slave market. Slave sellers had no mercy to
anybody. They were consumed with the love for money. Zaid was
afraid that his master would be a bad person. He was full of anger
towards the people who separated him from his family.
That day, while Zaid was looking at the crowd with sad eyes, a
cheerful man drew near to him.
- What is your name son? He asked.
- Zaid, sir.
- What is your father’s name?
- Harithah, sir.
While pronouncing his father’s name Zaid felt very sad. He felt a
deep pang when he thought that he was so far away from him. This
time, the man asked:
- Are you hungry?
Zaid nodded his head, and stayed quiet. He hadn’t eaten anything properly for days. He was longing for somebody to rescue
him from there.
The man felt sorry about Zaid, and said:
- Do you want to come with me and eat some tasty food?
Zaid liked that cheerful man.
- I would like to come with you even there is no food, he said.
The man paid the sellers for Zaid. Then, he held the child’s hand.
They walked together and came to a house. That was the house
of Khadija. The cheerful man knocked on the door. Soon after, the
hostess of the house appeared at the door. The man said:
- O daughter of my uncle! Here is the helper I bought for you.
Khadija caressed Zaid’s head. Then, she invited them in to the
house.
Zaid felt safe with these kindhearted people, and his sadness
was alleviated a little bit.
After a while, they sat down to a rich table, and ate with pleasure.