Sleep at the foot of the mountain

Everyone knew that Mazmell Alnoor would die when he turned twenty years old. Since he was young, Mazmell has been hearing this prophecy. The women who visit his mother pat his head gently and whisper: "Poor thing. The boy will die. The world is ruined." The boys who go out with him to herd the sheep jump in front of him and stick out their tongues, shouting: "Death is coming... Death is coming." The students returning from school, at the top of the village, pass by their house at noon and call out: "Death, death, Mazmell... you'll die tomorrow, Mazmell!" The elders sitting in front of Issa Faqiri's shop glance at him when he enters to buy sweets, murmuring: "A world without prosperity. May God have mercy on him." The mosque sheikh, when he sees him perform ablution in the courtyard of the old mosque, says: "May God give patience to your parents, Mazmell. Be kind to them as much as you can." The cars passing near the village point to the scattered houses and say: "This is Mazmell's village, who will die when he turns twenty."