A gaunt shivering child lay on the streets amidst the filth. Her skeletal arms were wrapped around her aching belly. She was beset with hunger. She hadn’t eaten in a fortnight. She needed food now. She sat up slowly with great pain and struggle, her limbs frail and weak. She looked around desperately, hoping to find something to satisfy her hunger.
Hurrah! In the corner of her eye, she spotted a thrown away half-eaten carrot in the street a few feet away. She began the arduous process of reaching her prize. Alas, she was too slow; a crow flew down, snatching the vegetable away before her tired legs could catch up.
Ooh! She spied a red round shape a few feet away. Was that an apple in the filthy ditch? She ran as fast as her fragile legs could take her. Sadly, it was not an apple, but a red ball.
Suddenly, she had a flash of memory. There was a market a few streets down. She arrived at the market exhausted. There was a delicious smell in the air. Her mouth began to water as she spotted the source of the smell; a merchant selling fresh cakes. But she had no money to pay him; she had to trick him. She did not rejoice at the thought, but had no other choice. She noticed a striped orange cat in a cage next to the vendor’s stall.
Eureka! She approached the vendor and pretended that the animal had escaped the cage. She nabbed a cake quietly as the vendor’s eyes wandered around the market looking for the missing cat.
Unfortunately, her ruse did not last long. Sadly, her frail legs could not outrun the vendor. He caught her by the nape of her neck. She trembled before the bulky man. She thought she would at last join her parents in their eternal slumber. But suddenly, an old woman stopped the fuming merchant as he was about to strike the little girl. The thief sighed with relief. Next came shock. The kind old woman offered to pay for the cake with one of her rusty golden rings. Her hunger was finally satiated.