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When the train had gone, I found myself standing alone on the deserted platform. I had no idea where to spend the night. I had no friends, believing that friends were more trouble than help. And I did not want to make anyone curious by staying at one of the small hotels near the station. The only person I knew really well was the man I had robbed. Leaving the station, I walked slowly through the bazaar.
In my short career as a thief, I had made a study of men’s faces when they had lost their goods. The greedy man showed fear; the rich man showed anger; the poor man showed acceptance. But I knew that Anil’s face, when he discovered the theft, would show only a touch of sadness. Not for the loss of money, but for the loss of trust.
I found myself in the maidan and sat down on a bench. The night was chilly — it was early November — and a light drizzle added to my discomfort. Soon it was raining quite heavily. My shirt and pyjamas stuck to my skin, and a cold wind blew the rain across my face.
Explanation:
After some time, when the train had left, the thief found himself all alone on the empty platform. The thief did not know where he would spend the night. He did not have any friends whom he could go to as he used to think that friends were more of a trouble than being helpful. He did not even want to stay at any small hotels as that would attract attention. He knew only one person very well, and he had also robbed him.
After leaving the station, the thief walked through the bazaar. While walking, he was thinking of his observations as a thief. In a short career span, he realized that although everybody – from rich to poor- reacts differently to losing their goods. After telling that, he said that he knew Anil would show only a tinge of sadness. That would not be because he lost his money but because he has lost his trust in the thief. He would be sad that he trusted someone so much and the person had betrayed him.
The thief was walking when he reached a park. He sat on a bench. As it was the month of November, the night was a bit chilly, and then the drizzle added to the thief's discomfort. It started raining heavily, and the thief's shirt and pyjamas stuck to his body. Also, the cold wind was blowing across the thief's face.
After leaving the station, the thief walked through the bazaar. While walking, he was thinking of his observations as a thief. In a short career span, he realized that although everybody – from rich to poor- reacts differently to losing their goods. After telling that, he said that he knew Anil would show only a tinge of sadness. That would not be because he lost his money but because he has lost his trust in the thief. He would be sad that he trusted someone so much and the person had betrayed him.
The thief was walking when he reached a park. He sat on a bench. As it was the month of November, the night was a bit chilly, and then the drizzle added to the thief's discomfort. It started raining heavily, and the thief's shirt and pyjamas stuck to his body. Also, the cold wind was blowing across the thief's face.
A bench in the park
Meanings of the difficult words:
| S.No | Words | Meanings |
1 | Platform | A long, flat raised structure at a railway station, where people get on and off trains |
2 | Desert | Having no people or things in it; empty |
3 | Curious | Interested in learning about people or things around you |
4 | Bazaar | An open market where people sell things, or any group of small shops or people selling goods |
5 | Career | Doing something regularly for most of your life, especially as your main way of making money |
6 | Trust | To believe that someone is good and honest and will not harm you, or that something is safe and reliable |
7 | Maidan | An open space in or near a town, used as a parade ground or for events such as public meetings |
Reference:
National Council of Educational Research and Training (2007). The Thief's Story - Ruskin Bond (pp. 08-13). Published at the Publication Division by the Secretary, National Council of Educational Research and Training, Sri Aurobindo Marg, New Delhi.
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