“Don’t be sad, Farabi, and don’t think seriously about what your friend Harun did…. I know a story about friends. Listen.”

Two friends were walking through a desert. After a while they had a quarrel. and one friend slapped the other. The friend who got slapped was hurt. But without saying anything he wrote in the sand:

Today my best friend slapped me in the face.

They kept walking until they found an oasis. There they decided to take a bath. The one who was slapped before got stuck in the quicksand and started going down. But his friend saved him. After he was saved he wrote on a stone:

Today my best friend saved my life.

The friend who slapped and saved his best friend asked, “After I hurt you, you wrote in the sand and now you write on a stone. Why?”

The other friend replied, “When someone hurts us, we should write it down in the sand. The wind can erase it away. But when someone does something good for us, we should engrave it on stone, so no wind can erase it.”

“Do you know the moral of the story?” Flora asked.

Farabi nodded and smiled, “Yes, we should forget our hurts, but remember our good deeds forever.”

Bangla Translation: “দুঃখিত হয়ো না, ফারাবি, এবং তোমার বন্ধু হারুন যা করেছে তা নিয়ে বেশি চিন্তা কোরো না… আমি বন্ধুদের নিয়ে একটি গল্প জানি। শোনো।“

দুই বন্ধু মরুভূমির মধ্যে হাঁটছিল। কিছুক্ষণ পর তাদের মধ্যে তর্ক বেধে গেল, এবং এক বন্ধু অন্য বন্ধুকে চড় মারল। যে বন্ধু চড় খেয়েছিল, সে ব্যথা পেল, কিন্তু কিছু না বলে বালিতে লিখল:

“আজ আমার সবচেয়ে ভালো বন্ধু আমাকে চড় মারল।“

তারা হাঁটতে লাগল যতক্ষণ না তারা একটি ওয়েসিস পেল। সেখানে তারা গোসল করার সিদ্ধান্ত নিল। যে বন্ধু আগে চড় খেয়েছিল, সে হঠাৎ কর্দমাক্ত বালিতে আটকে গেল এবং তলিয়ে যেতে লাগল। কিন্তু তার বন্ধু তাকে রক্ষা করল। রক্ষা পাওয়ার পর সে একটি পাথরে লিখল:
“আজ আমার সবচেয়ে ভালো বন্ধু আমার জীবন বাঁচাল।“

যে বন্ধু চড় মেরেছিল এবং পরবর্তীতে বন্ধুকে বাঁচিয়েছিল, সে জিজ্ঞাসা করল, “আমি যখন তোমাকে কষ্ট দিলাম, তুমি বালিতে লিখলে, আর এখন তুমি পাথরে লিখছ কেন?”

অন্য বন্ধু উত্তর দিল, “যখন কেউ আমাদের কষ্ট দেয়, তখন তা বালিতে লেখা উচিত, যেন বাতাস এসে তা মুছে দিতে পারে। কিন্তু যখন কেউ আমাদের জন্য ভালো কিছু করে, তখন তা পাথরে খোদাই করা উচিত, যেন কোনো বাতাসই তা মুছে দিতে না পারে।“

“তুমি কি গল্পের নৈতিক শিক্ষা বুঝতে পেরেছ?” ফ্লোরা জিজ্ঞেস করল।

ফারাবি মাথা নেড়ে হাসল, “হ্যাঁ, আমাদের কষ্টগুলো ভুলে যেতে হবে, কিন্তু ভালো কাজগুলো চিরদিন মনে রাখতে হবে।“

1. Choose the correct answer from the alternatives.
2. Who was feeling sad in the story?
   (i) Harun
   (ii) Flora
   (iii) Farabi
   (iv) The friend who slapped

Ans: (iii) Farabi

2. Who told the story about friendship?
   (i) Harun
   (ii) Flora
   (iii) Farabi
   (iv) The friend who slapped

Ans: (ii) Flora

3. Where were the two friends walking?
   (i) In a forest
   (ii) In a desert
   (iii) In a city
   (iv) In a village

Ans: (ii) In a desert

4. What happened between the two friends?
   (i) They lost their way
   (ii) They had a quarrel
   (iii) They found treasure
   (iv) They got separated

Ans: (ii) They had a quarrel

5. What did one friend do to the other?
   (i) He hugged him
   (ii) He gave him food
   (iii) He slapped him
   (iv) He ignored him

Ans: (iii) He slapped him

6. How did the friend react after being slapped?
   (i) He fought back
   (ii) He wrote in the sand
   (iii) He ran away
   (iv) He complained to others

Ans: (ii) He wrote in the sand

7. What did he write in the sand?
   (i) My friend hates me
   (ii) Today my best friend saved my life
   (iii) Today my best friend slapped me in the face
   (iv) Friends should never fight

Ans: (iii) Today my best friend slapped me in the face

8. Where did the friends go after their quarrel?
   (i) To a school
   (ii) To a river
   (iii) To an oasis
   (iv) To a city

Ans: (iii) To an oasis

9. What did they decide to do at the oasis?
   (i) Drink water
   (ii) Take a bath
   (iii) Rest under a tree
   (iv) Hunt for food

Ans: (ii) Take a bath

10. What happened to the friend who was slapped?
    (i) He drowned in the water
    (ii) He got stuck in quicksand
    (iii) He left his friend
    (iv) He found a treasure

Ans: (ii) He got stuck in quicksand

11. Who saved the friend from quicksand?
    (i) A stranger
    (ii) His best friend
    (iii) Flora
    (iv) Farabi

Ans: (ii) His best friend

12. What did the friend write on a stone?
    (i) My best friend betrayed me
    (ii) Today my best friend saved my life
    (iii) Friendship is painful
    (iv) I will never trust my friend again

Ans: (ii) Today my best friend saved my life

13. Why did the friend write in the sand earlier?
    (i) Because it was easy to erase
    (ii) Because he was angry
    (iii) Because he wanted revenge
    (iv) Because he liked writing

Ans: (i) Because it was easy to erase

14. What lesson does the story teach?
    (i) Always remember bad things
    (ii) Forget hurts and cherish kindness
    (iii) Revenge is important
    (iv) Never trust a friend

Ans: (ii) Forget hurts and cherish kindness

15. Who asked about the moral of the story?
    (i) Flora
    (ii) Farabi
    (iii) Harun
    (iv) The teacher

Ans: (i) Flora

16. What did Farabi do after listening to the story?
    (i) He started crying
    (ii) He nodded and smiled
    (iii) He ignored it
    (iv) He got angry

Ans: (ii) He nodded and smiled

17. What did Farabi learn?
    (i) To always take revenge
    (ii) To cherish only good deeds
    (iii) To never make friends
    (iv) To avoid people

Ans: (ii) To cherish only good deeds

18. Who was Harun in the story?
    (i) Flora’s friend
    (ii) Farabi’s friend
    (iii) The teacher
    (iv) A stranger

Ans: (ii) Farabi’s friend

19. What did Flora want to teach Farabi?
    (i) To fight back
    (ii) To understand friendship
    (iii) To always win arguments
    (iv) To never forgive

Ans: (ii) To understand friendship

20. What does writing on a stone symbolize?
    (i) Forgetting the past
    (ii) Keeping good memories forever
    (iii) Destroying friendships
    (iv) Seeking revenge

Ans: (ii) Keeping good memories forever

21. Why should we write bad memories in sand?
    (i) So they can be erased
    (ii) So they last forever
    (iii) So others can see them
    (iv) So we can remember them always

Ans: (i) So they can be erased

22. What is an oasis?
    (i) A dry desert area
    (ii) A place with many trees
    (iii) A place with water in a desert
    (iv) A large city

Ans: (iii) A place with water in a desert

23. Why did Farabi smile at the end?
    (i) Because he was angry
    (ii) Because he forgot everything
    (iii) Because he learned a lesson
    (iv) Because he won an argument

Ans: (iii) Because he learned a lesson

24. Who is the narrator of the story?
    (i) Farabi
    (ii) Flora
    (iii) Harun
    (iv) The teacher

Ans: (ii) Flora

25. How should we treat good deeds?
    (i) Like engravings on stone
    (ii) Like writing in sand
    (iii) Like something to forget
    (iv) Like a mistake

Ans: (i) Like engravings on stone

26. What is the main theme of the story?
    (i) Always remember bad experiences
    (ii) Friendship and forgiveness
    (iii) Never forgive anyone
    (iv) Fight with friends

Ans: (ii) Friendship and forgiveness

27. What lesson does the wind erasing the sand teach?
    (i) Forgetting everything is important
    (ii) We should never write on sand
    (iii) Forget past hurts
    (iv) Always keep grudges

Ans: (iii) Forget past hurts

28. What quality did the friend show by saving the other?
    (i) Kindness
    (ii) Anger
    (iii) Hatred
    (iv) Jealousy

Ans: (i) Kindness

29. Why did Flora tell the story?
    (i) To make Farabi feel better
    (ii) To make Harun feel guilty
    (iii) To confuse Farabi
    (iv) To make fun of Farabi

Ans: (i) To make Farabi feel better

30. What happens to writing in sand?
    (i) It stays forever
    (ii) It gets erased
    (iii) It becomes a stone
    (iv) It turns into gold

Ans: (ii) It gets erased

31. What happens to writing on stone?
    (i) It disappears quickly
    (ii) It stays forever
    (iii) It changes into dust
    (iv) It fades in a day

Ans: (ii) It stays forever

32. Why did the friend not argue back?
    (i) He was too weak
    (ii) He valued friendship more
    (iii) He was afraid
    (iv) He wanted to leave

Ans: (ii) He valued friendship more

33. What does quicksand symbolize?
    (i) Happiness
    (ii) Life’s dangers
    (iii) Friendship
    (iv) A playground

Ans: (ii) Life’s dangers

34. How do we make friendships strong?
    (i) By fighting often
    (ii) By forgiving
    (iii) By ignoring each other
    (iv) By arguing every day

Ans: (ii) By forgiving

35. What does the desert setting suggest?
    (i) A place of challenges
    (ii) A fun and easy life
    (iii) A magical world
    (iv) A cold and rainy place

Ans: (i) A place of challenges

36. Why was the slap forgiven?
    (i) Because friendships matter more
    (ii) Because it was funny
    (iii) Because the friend forgot
    (iv) Because the friend left

Ans: (i) Because friendships matter more

37. Why do students learn morals through stories?
    (i) Because they are easy to understand
    (ii) Because they are boring
    (iii) Because they are long
    (iv) Because they are difficult

Ans: (i) Because they are easy to understand

38. What do good friends do?
    (i) Support each other
    (ii) Always fight
    (iii) Ignore each other
    (iv) Hurt each other

Ans: (i) Support each other

39. What does the story suggest about life?
    (i) Life is full of enemies
    (ii) Life is about learning and growing
    (iii) Life is about revenge
    (iv) Life is unfair

Ans: (ii) Life is about learning and growing

40. Why should we appreciate kindness?
    (i) Because it builds strong relationships
    (ii) Because it makes us rich
    (iii) Because it makes us famous
    (iv) Because it helps us forget everything

 B. Answer the following questions:

1. Who was feeling sad in the story?
2. What did Farabi’s friend do to hurt him?
3. Where were the two friends walking?
4. What did the friend who was slapped write in the sand?
5. Why did the two friends stop walking in the desert?
6. What did the friend write on the stone after saving his companion?
7. Why did the friend write his hurt in the sand?
8. Why did the friend choose to write the good deed on stone?
9. What lesson did the story teach about writing in the sand and on stone?
10. How did the wind relate to the writing in the sand?
11. What did the friend want to know after seeing the writings in the sand and on the stone?
12. Who asked Farabi about the moral of the story?
13. What did Farabi learn after hearing the story?
14. Why was Farabi smiling after hearing the story?
15. What does the stone symbolize in the story?
16. What does the sand symbolize in the story?
17. What did the friend learn from his actions?
18. What is the significance of the wind in the story?
19. Where did the two friends find the oasis?
20. What did the friend do to help his friend from the quicksand?
21. What made the friend who was slapped feel better after being hurt?
22. What did the two friends decide to do after the slap?
23. How did the friend react after being saved from the quicksand?
24. What moral lesson does the story teach us about forgiveness?
25. What did the second friend do to show his appreciation for the good deed?
26. Why is it important to forgive and forget bad things, according to the story?
27. Why do you think the wind is used to erase the hurt in the story?
28. How did the two friends react after resolving their issues?
29. What does the story suggest about how we should treat our friends?