A dark-skinned boy with almond-shaped
big brown eyes and no future: a friend against all odds.
‘Do you think that you coming back to
Morocco in future?’ asked the boy.
‘I don’t know, Rashid. Maybe I will,
maybe not. You see I don’t belong here… I’m a foreigner, a stranger. This is
not my place… Yet, maybe one day, in Europe, I will remember this day and
decide to come back here to see how you are doing. It would be nice to see what
kind of man you become.’
They were both sitting on the rocky
beach, Leonardo dressed in his jeans and t-shirt, Rashid wrapped in his jillaba, the ancient Medina buildings standing silently
behind them. Leonardo looked out to the beautiful horizon with the blue sea
diluting itself in the sky above. They listened to the whispering wind, whilst
absorbing the strong Moroccan afternoon heat. Far away, disappearing into the
horizon, a seemingly tiny ship sailed away from sight, most likely heading for
European shores. He imagined that up close it would tower over them like a huge
sea monster. As the ship slowly vanished
from sight, Rashid couldn’t help but think sadly about his life. He knew that although Leonardo had good
intentions, he would never come back to see him. And while he was becoming a
doctor, lawyer, or engineer in Europe, Rashid would be continuing his boring,
humiliating, and poorly paid work as a tour guide until he was old enough to join
his father at the factory. He sighed and slowly stood. Time to get back to work.
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