(2) A HOBBY THAT MADE MONEY

Author: Rizwan Ahmed Memon

           Some children like to have a cat; others want a dog. Every child has his own likes and dislikes. Raheel was fond of birds, hens and roosters. He would buy little chickens and feed them. When they grew and started laying eggs, he would keep those hens which laid eggs and sell the others. In so doing, Raheel made a lot of money. His hobby turned out to be his small business.

             Raheel never let his hobby disturb his studies. He went to school regularly and punctually, and he also did his homework on time. Feeding and looking after the birds was a time-consuming task, so his mother helped him with the birds. People came to Raheel to buy the birds and eggs. These were his customers! “Mom, did any customer come?” he asked his mother after coming back from school.

             “Yes, son. I have sold all the eggs,” she replied. Raheel would buy his clothes with the profit. After using the money for his basic expenses, he also used to put a little amount aside. Raheel was in the fifth class when he had collected a good sum of money, so he used the money to buy a bicycle. With his brother's help, Raheel found a bicycle he liked very much.

             When Raheel finished primary school and entered high school, he began to notice that his hobby was disturbing his studies. He developed a strong passion for English and computers, so he sold all his birds and devoted all his time to studies. Raheel bought his first computer with the money he got from selling his birds and his bicycle.

            Ten years have passed since that time. Raheel has become a good speaker and teacher of the English language, and he has a university degree in Computer Science. He believes that if he had not sold his birds, he would never have become a computer scientist today. In order to get something, we have to leave something, and we must leave something good for something better.

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What was Raheel’s hobby?

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Why did he sell all of his birds?

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