Fqir Twelidt u Fqir Immut
Framed mixed medium on wood
Created by Mark Mallia & Farrell
Size: 40cm x 40cm
Fqir Twelidt u Fqir Immut
Raġel fqir kien jaqla ftit flus, kemm kemm jgħix hu u martu, mill-insiġ. Waqt li jinseġ kien dejjem jgħanni dwar kemm kien twieled fqir u li fqir kien se jmut. Is-sultan kien jisimgħu jgħanni din l-għanja ta’ swied ta’ qalb u darba minnhom tant tħassru u bagħtlu tiġieġa msajra, mimlija flus tad-deheb. Ir-raġel qatt ma kien kiel tiġieġa sħiħa. Ħa koxxa għalih u għal martu u l-bqija bagħtu għand sid il-kera tal-art. U l-għada kompla jgħanni l-istess għanja. Is-sultan semgħu, tħawwad, u reġa bagħtlu dundjan imsajjar, mimli liri tad deheb. U għal darb’ oħra, il-fqir żamm koxxa u bagħat il bqija lil sid il-kera tal-art. Meta l-għada s-sultan reġa’sema’ lill-fqir jgħanni l-istess għanja, tilef sabru. Ħadu miegħu, tah ġebla u qallu biex iwaddabha ‘l bogħod b’kemm kellu saħħa. Sa fejn taqa l-ġebla kien ikun kollu art tiegħu. Bl eċitament iżda, ir-raġel ħalla l-ġebla tiżloqlu minn idu. Din waqgħet dritt għal fuq rasu u ħallietu minxur mejjet fl-art. U dak il-ħin, miblugħ, is-sultan reġa’ sema’ l-għanja tal-fqir tidwi f’widnejh.
Spin the Bobbin
A weaver worked hard, barely making ends meet. While spinning, he used to sing a sad song about him being born and dying poor. The king used to hear him and pitied him. One day, he sent him a roasted chicken stuffed with gold coins. Never having eaten a whole chicken before, the poor man kept a chicken leg for him and his wife, and sent the rest to his landlord. The following day, to his surprise, the king heard the poor man singing the same song. So he sent him a turkey stuffed with gold coins. This time too, the man kept a leg to share with his wife and sent the rest to the landlord. How astonished was the king the next day, when he heard the poor man singing the same depressing words. He took him in his carriage, gave him a stone and aked him to throw it as far as he could. All the land reaching to where the stone falls, would be his. But in his excitement, the poor man let the stone slip and fall straight on his head, killing him. And for the last time, the king heard the poor man’s sad song echoing in his ears.
