Unseen Passage for Class 4 - Passage 05

One day, I went to the food court with my parents. I noticed an old man, all wrinkly and hunched, going round the tables, lugging a huge bag. At our table, he held out three packets of tissue paper in his bony hand and mumbled under his breath. Mom felt sorry for him and paid a dollar for them. He nodded appreciatively at us and left. I crinkled my nose and rolled my eyes at the back view of the old man as he hobbled away. "Old people are useless!" I muttered in disgust.

A week later, I was walking through a park to go home. I was unhappy with my teacher, Miss Tandon. Pretending to be a judge, I said, "You, Miss Tandon, are found guilty of giving the ten-year-old under your charge too much homework! By the power vested in me, I order you to adopt a no-homework policy..."

Suddenly, loud barking broke the calm of the park. I turned around to see two brown dogs charging in my direction. I emptied my lungs and started running for dear life. My legs quickly burnt from the sudden exertion. Soon I was gasping for breath. The dogs were closing in. Then I fell. Thinking that my pursuers would pounce on me and sink their teeth into me, I squeezed my eyes shut, bracing myself for their bites.

Instead, I heard growling. I opened my eyes and saw a boy around my age waving at the dogs with a big tree branch. The dogs' attention had been diverted from me. Now, they were snarling at him and poised for an attack. I picked up another branch on the ground and helped the boy fight off the dogs. We battled courageously. However, we were no match for the dogs. After a while, our backs were against a tree with the salivating dogs just a meter away. Then, we heard the sweetest words ever. "Here doggies, come to Grandpa!" an old man shouted as he laid some chicken bones on the ground. Immediately, the dogs lost interest in us and bounded to the food. We almost collapsed with relief. The old man then gave us a wink and smiled.

That day, I saw old age in a new light. The elderly could also be resourceful and helpful towards others. I started to have a sense of respect for them.