Mudelihami’s Eyeglasses
A sad story, and yet funny

His name is Mudelihami. He is fifty. Mudelihami never went to school. Because of that, he doesn’t know how to read and write. He hasn’t learned even one letter. But Mudelihami’s friends can read and write well. Those guys use eyeglasses. Therefore, they can read the newspapers.

So Mudelihami thought that if he had eyeglasses, they would be the thing he wanted and he would be able to read. After that Mudelihami went to the eyeglass-store to buy eyeglasses. Mudelihami asked the clerk working in the store whether he could buy some eyeglasses. So, the clerk gave Mudelihami a newspaper to read, because he wanted to test Mudelihami’s eyes. But Mudelihami couldn’t read even one letter.

The second time, the clerk put a pair of glasses on Mudelihami’s eyes and said, “read this paper.” But even that time, he couldn’t read. The next time he gave him another pair of glasses and a different book to read. But, even with that, he couldn’t read. In this way the clerk, having given Mudelihami all the glasses in the store, saw that even so he couldn’t read.

Finally Mudelihami said, “The glasses in this store are no good. If I could get a really good pair of glasses, I would be able to read.” Upon hearing this story, the clerk gave him yet another pair of glasses and yet another book. This time, though, the clerk saw that Mudelihami was trying to read the book while it was upside-down. He asked Mudelihami, “do you know how to read and write?”

Now Mudelihami said, “I don’t know the letters, but if I have good glasses I’ll be able to read and write. In this store, the glasses are not good.” Mudelihami said, again, to the clerk. Then the clerk got a bit angry. He said, “Mudelihami, you’re innocent, but really stupid. If you want to read and write, you must learn the letters. Even if you have glasses you won’t be able to read. Go, learn the letters, and come back. Then if your eyes have a problem, I’ll find some good glasses for you.”

But Mudelihami never went back to that store to get glasses.