LITMIR.BIZ

      CHAPTER 5

      CHANGES IN RELATIONSHIPS

      Over time, the interest of the inhabitants of Achmas to Camel decreased significantly. Although from time to time residents and turned to Camel for advice

      Camels barn nearby gathered in a handful to chat only with avid idlers, and the rest of the residents preferred to spend their free time, as before sitting on the benches outside their houses.

      When Camel came to the bazaar (market), he was no longer welcomed with greetings, no one came up to Camel to inquire about his mood and health, no one offered Camel tasty fruits. Camel himself came to the shelves and chose the fruits he liked, he took them home.

      Talkings about how to build a new, more comfortable and more beautiful home for Camel, instead of the barn in which he was placed right after his arrival, also somehow stopped by themselves.

      Achmas people got used to Camel and stopped asking him about this and that. Then one day, when, at the bazaar, Camel began to choose pears he liked from one of the vendors, the Seller rather rudely told Camel that he should take the fruits from someone else today, as he took the pears from this Seller yesterday and that the Seller was tired of giving such wonderful fruits for nothing (gratis), (and Camel did not pay anything for anything), and he (the Seller) would like to earn something for his family.

      These words are very offended Camel, he threw the selected fruits back to the counter and left the market. Many other sellers have heard this conversation, and seemed silently approving of it. Camel returned home (he lost his appetite for such an event and did not want to eat), sat down and began to reflect on the situation.

      It seemed to him that everyone began to treat him indifferently or even with hostility and that there was no point in such conditions to remain in Achmas. He decided to go back to the capital tomorrow and return to his native zoo. He left a note for the Mayor of the city in the barn explaining the reasons for his departure and left for the capital in the morning bus. He also left a farewell note for his friend Rustam-muallim.