Arab Americans -- Fiction; Immigrants -- New York (State) -- New York -- Fiction
"One evening we quarrelled about this, and Im-Hanna sided with me. She
rated Khalid, saying, 'You're a good-for-nothing loafer; you don't
deserve the _mojadderah_ you eat.' And I remember how she took me
aside that evening and whispered something about books, and Khalid's
head, and Mar-Kizhayiah.[1] Indeed, Im-Hanna seriously believed that
Khalid should be taken to Mar-Kizhayiah. She did not know that New
York was full of such institutions.[2] Her scolding, however, seemed
to have more effect on Khalid than my reasoning. And consenting to go
out with me, he got up the following morning, took down his stock from
the shelf, every little article of it--he left nothing there--and
packed all into his peddling-box. He then squeezed into the bottom
drawer, which he had filled with scapulars, the bottle with a little
of the Stuff in it. For we were in accord about this, that in New York
whiskey is better than arak. And we both took a nip now and then. So I
thought the bottle was in order. But why he placed his bank book,
which was no longer worth a straw, into that bottom drawer, I could
not guess. With these preparations, however, we shouldered our boxes,
and in an hour we were in the suburbs. We foot it along then, until we
reach a row of cottages not far from the railway station. 'Will you
knock at one of these doors,' I asked. And he, 'I do not feel like
chaffering and bargaining this morning.' 'Why then did you come out,'
I urged. And he, in an air of nonchalance, 'Only for the walk.' And
so, we pursued our way in the Bronx, until we reached one of our
favourite spots, where a sycamore tree seemed to invite us to its
ample shade.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account