Islamic Article |- A Brother Like That

Shuaib received an automobile from his brother as an Eid present. On
Eid day when Shuaib came out of his house, a street urchin was walking
around the shiny new car, admiring it. "Is this your car, Uncle?" he
asked. Shuaib nodded."My brother gave it to me for Eid." The boy
wasastounded.
"You mean your brother gave it to you and it didn't cost you nothing?
Boy, I wish..." He hesitated. Of course Shuaib knew what he was going
to wish for. He was going to wish he had a brother like that. But what
the lad said jarred Shuaib all the waydown to his heels. "I wish," the
boy went on,"that I could be a brother like that." Shuaib looked at
the boyin astonishment, then impulsively he added,"Would you like to
take a ride in my automobile?" "Oh yes, I'dlove that."
After a short ride, the boy turned and with his eyes aglow, said,
"Uncle, would you mind driving in front of my house?" Shuaib smiled a
little. He thought he knew what the lad wanted. He wanted to show his
neighbors that he could ride home in a big automobile. But Shuaib was
wrong again. "Will you stop where those two steps are?" the boy asked.
He ran up the steps. Then in a little while Shuaib heard him coming
back, but he wasnot coming fast. He was carrying his little crippled
brother. He sat him down on the bottom step, then sort ofsqueezed up
against himand pointed to the car.
"There it is, little brother, just like I told you upstairs. His
brother gave it to him for Eid and it didn't cost him a penny. And
some day I'mgonna give you one just like it...then you can see for
yourself all the prettythings in the Shop windows that I've been
trying to tell you about."
Shuaib got out and liftedthe boy to the front seat of his car. The
shining-eyed older brother climbed in beside him and the three of them
began a memorable ride. That Eid, Shuaib learned what the RasulAllah
(salAllahu alayhi wasalam) meant when he had said: "love for your
brother what you love for yourself".