The Crystal Ball

In the south of Spain, there was a small village whose people were very joyful. The children played under the shades of trees in the gardens of their homes.

A shepherd boy named Nasir stayed near the village with his father, mother and grandmother. Each morning, he took his herd of goats up the hills to find a suitable place for them to graze. In the afternoon he would return with them to the village. Each night his grandmother would tell him a story - the story of stars. This story really interested Nasir.

On one of those days, as Nasir was watching his herd and playing his flute, he suddenly saw a wonderful light behind a flower bush. When he approached the bush, he saw a transparent and very beautiful crystal ball.

The crystal ball was glittering like a colorful rainbow. Nasir carefully took it in his hand and turned it around. With surprise, suddenly, he heard a weak voice coming from the crystal ball. It said, "You can make a wish that your heart desires and I will fulfill it."

Nasir could not believe that he had actually heard a voice. When he made sure that he had indeed heard that voice from the crystal ball, he was very confused. He had so many wishes that he could not decide upon one particular wish. He said to himself, 'if I wait till tomorrow I will remember many things. Then I will make my wish.'

He put the crystal ball in a bag and, gathering the herd, happily returned to the village. He decided that he would not tell anyone about the crystal ball.

On the following day also, Nasir could not decide what to wish for, because he really had everything he needed.

The days passed as usual, but Nasir was still unable to make his wish. But he appeared to be very cheerful. The people around him were amazed to see the change in his disposition.

One day, a boy followed Nasir and his herd and hid behind a tree. Nasir, as usual, sat in one corner, took out the crystal ball and for a few moments looked at it. The boy waited for the moment when Nasir would go to sleep. When Nasir did fall asleep after a while, the boy took the crystal ball and ran away.

When he arrived at the village, he called all the people and showed them the crystal ball. The citizens of that village took the crystal ball in their hands and turned it around with surprise. Suddenly they heard a voice from inside the crystal ball, which said, "I can fulfill your wish." One person too...