This story happened in one of the beautiful gardens of al-Hameh, where the weather was pleasant and the widely spreading branches of the tall trees swayed in the gentle breeze.
The sun was smiling, casting its bright light across the whole of existence and watching the talented little boy on the back of his beloved horse, galloping at full speed across the verdant pastures.
The father of the little master had died while he was still enjoying his childhood and still only seven years old; so only he and his affectionate mother were left in the house after his elder brother Saleem had left to live and work far away.
As for his father’s horse, it was still in its stable – its master horseman had left forever, but the master’s son, the young horseman, had not.
While his father was still alive, he, Mohammad Amin, managed to mount it in secret or by clever contrivance, but now, after his father’s death, he was alone with his mother, a gentle, kind, compassionate woman who was devoted to her young child.
He no longer needed to devise such intricate schemes, but just to give the matter a little forethought. Sometimes he would come to his mother and try to coax her with sweet words, and other times he insisted on having his own way, which usually led to her giving him the key of the stable, so he could take the horse out; how happy he was then!
His joy and happiness were so infectious that his mother could not fail to be affected by it! But nonetheless her mind was still preoccupied with her concern for him, for he was a small child and she was afraid that he might fall off the horse, al-Assilah. God forbid that such a thing should happen, because if it did he would certainly be hurt, an unbearable thought that she could not even contemplate. So, sometimes she refused to let him take the horse out, although it meant he would be so angry and upset that he would stop playing or even talking to her for quite some time. She was caught between two very difficult situations which filled her heart with pain and sadness for him.
It was as if she was trapped between two fires: if she did not allow him to ride the horse she would be sad because he was sad; but if she did allow him to ride, she would be so worried about him that, she would feel compelled to go out to watch him riding around their big orchard in al- Hamehin the Barada valley.
One day, Amin had mounted the horse and was racing across the garden, against the fresh, blustery wind. What an idyllic time it was for him, surrounded by the beauty of nature and the tall trees tossing their branches in the freshening breeze. The little horseman was enraptured, a free spirit racing across the land as though the whole world was not big enough for him. His mother was anxious, and yet she was happy when she saw his unbridled joy… but suddenly, something awful happened… oh! How terrible!
As the little hero was at full gallop – as swift as lightning – so fast that even the most accomplished of the great horsemen would not have been able to keep up with him, he passed beneath the widespread branches of a huge old tree, and he was caught on one of the low growing branches while he was still moving at full speed, it whipped him across the abdomen and he was snatched from the back of his horse.
Amin’s mother almost fainted at this terrible sight, and could not bear to look at her son lying there on the ground; she was so overcome that she could only imagine the worst possible outcome. She covered her eyes to avoid seeing this terrible disaster, and as her legs gave way beneath her she slipped to the ground. Convinced that her beloved child was
about to die she bent her head rather than witness his death.
These were painful and critical moments… it was a dreadful shock and a feeling of grief overcame her as she was sure that her beloved child had just died in this unfortunate accident. The horse continued its headlong dash, running for some distance, before stopping when it missed the weight of the young horseman on its back.
As for Mohammad Amin, with very quick thinking, he had managed to turn a complete somersault around the branch by grabbing it with his hands and thrusting his head down and his legs up, to complete an almost perfect circle… and so avoided the extremely serious injury that might otherwise have resulted from this high speed collision.
Then he dropped down to the ground, landing on his strong legs; thank God that his body was so strong and flexible. He then ran to his horse, which had stopped quite some distance ahead of him, and with a leap, he landed firmly on its back in a seated position and sent it galloping ahead again, racing with the gusty wind.
This entire spectacular scenario took place within the space of just a few moments, throughout which his desperate mother had her eyes firmly closed, thinking only of the worst possible outcome, convinced that it must have resulted in the death of her beloved son.
When the horse continued to race ahead – as though nothing untoward had happened – towards Mohammad Amin’s poor mother, she still sat with head bowed and eyes covered, oblivious of what was happening around her, but feeling as if the ground was quaking beneath her. In the meantime, the little horseman firmly seated on the back of his horse raced up to her, and when she heard the horse’s movement she raised her head and took her hands from her eyes which were brimming with tears of great sadness. She could not believe her eyes, for the young horseman was still on his horse!
Then Mohammad Amin asked her, ‘Mother! What’s the matter with you?’
She still could not believe what she had just seen and heard, but she answered in a sad, low voice, ‘Nothing my son, nothing,’ and started to rub her eyes, as though she had woken from a bad dream. Or was it a daydream? Her dear son was before her mounted on his horse, sound and healthy, as if none of what she had just witnessed had actually happened! Then she said again, in a stupor that pervaded her words, ‘No, nothing my son, nothing,’ and she told herself that she had imagined it and that no accident or incident had taken place.
All was well, thank God, and as the proverb says, ‘All’s well that ends well!’ Here was her sturdy son astride his horse before her, sound and healthy, and in fine form. How could she continue to deny seeing him when the evidence was before her eyes! Of course she could not, because he was right there talking to her and she was talking to him!
Then the little hero understood what torment his mother had just suffered and realised what she had been through as relief flooded across her face and she became overwhelmed with joy. It was as if the accident she had just witnessed was nothing more than a mirage, an illusion, or a horrible daydream which was now mercifully in the past. That was what she now thought and still she could not believe what she had seen with her own eyes. And so, she was able to smile again and thereupon, her kind and gentle son left her and rushed away yet again mounted on his horse, but he had understood very well what an extremely difficult situation she had just experienced.
Mohammad Amin knew how much his mother loved him and the extent of her concern and worry, and so because of his extreme compassion towards her, he had led her to believe that nothing untoward had actually happened to him. He convinced her not to believe what her eyes had seen so that she would avoid any feeling of pain, and be free from living in a state of constant worry about him.
What a youth! He had extraordinary intelligence and presence of mind, a heart as strong and upright as the mountains, and he displayed exemplary behaviour; yet it was the great sympathy and kindness for his mother that led him to let her think that the accident had been a mere illusion so that she would not suffer. This was all because he knew how deeply she loved him.
What a merciful, knowledgeable, free-spirited boy he was – dutiful to his mother – and truly the world would be a better place if all boys were like him.