Once there lived a man who grew rich through his hard work and industry. His parents gave him a good education and he made worthy use of it. He went to the best business school, laboured hard and earned a prestigious degree. He was snapped up by the sharpest corporate head-hunter and recruited to the largest company with a hefty initial salary (or 'package', as it is called). His name was Abdullah.
His parents died, one soon after the other, but he put his shoulder to the wheel and kept working hard. There was nothing else for him. His only dream was to make it to the top of the ladder and become rich. He dreamed of starting his own company one day, entering the Forbes 500 list, and even becoming the richest and most powerful man in the world. For this, he continued to work hard and to ring in the numbers.
One evening, as he was returning home from his office – it was quite late, you see; he never got back home at the usual hours like everybody else – a man unexpectedly jumped in front of his car and got hit. The street was deserted at this hour, there was no traffic nor any living soul to be seen, the road was well lit, and yet, Abdullah did not see the man coming. He was terrified. He thought he had killed the guy, that he would go to jail, and that all his dreams and ambitions would now go down the drain. His mind raced quickly through all the possibilities. Did he have a good lawyer? Should he make a run for it? Was that the pressure of pee that was pounding in his scrotum? He was paralysed with fear and unable even to step out of the car. Slowly, the man stirred. Abdullah breathed again. He got out of the car. The man was a deadbeat, and was obviously drunk. Abdullah just wanted to make sure the man wasn't too badly hit, and to drive away to the safety of his residence.
Abdullah approached the drunkard, who was by now on his feet. As Abdullah got nearer, the man turned around and beamed a glorious smile – like the radiance of the sun breaking through on a cold winter day – full into Abdullah's face. Abdullah was taken aback. This was not his mental picture of deadbeat drunks, beaming beatific smiles, their skin glowing.