A Plate of Food: A short story by Muhammad Raza

 A Plate of Food: A short story by Muhammad Raza

Harry was a happy boy. He lived in a small hut with his father close to a lush and plentiful forest, and spent the day playing games with his friends in the nearby village. His father, a successful hunter, would bring in food every day for the two to eat and made sure that his son was never hungry.

Harry, however, tended to waste food. Every time he didn’t clean his plate, he threw his leftovers into the forest rather than save them for the next day. His father, who, unbeknownst to Harry, had noticed this habit, devised a plan to teach his son a valuable lesson.

One ordinary morning, Harry found his father sick in bed, unable to hunt.

“Harry,” the father said “I need you to hunt for us until I regain my strength, or we will starve”

Harry, though not a proficient hunter, resolved to provide the day’s nourishment for himself and his father. 

The first task Harry attempted to accomplish was killing a deer. Sneaking through the forest, Harry tried to shoot any deer he saw with a bow and arrow. However, he was a poor shooter and scared away all the deer that he found.

After hours of hunting to no avail, Harry attempted to fish in the nearby lake. He set his bait into the water, waiting for what seemed eternities for fish to bite. Whenever he did manage to get a bite, however, he had difficulty reeling his catch in and was forced to jump into the water and grab the fish by hand. After finally catching enough fish for a sufficient meal, Harry set foot to forge in the forest.

After searching for hours for the right herbs, mushrooms, and spices, to make a fulfilling meal, he finally returned home to his father. Exhausted, sweaty, soaking, and aching, Harry made a dish for both of them. That was the first night that Harry wiped his plate clean. To his surprise, though, his father had barely eaten half of the food that Harry had taken so long to prepare.

“Harry, I do not feel like eating anymore. Please throw these leftovers into the forest”, ordered Harry’s father

“What!” Harry replied, “I spent hours today preparing this meal for us and you, leaving half of it untouched, want to throw it away?”

His father chuckled and said:

 “Is this not what you do every day when I bring in food for us?”

Harry, realizing his mistake, promised his father that he would never take any blessing for granted ever again.