Last week was very bad for me. I had many problems at work and I was very tired. On Friday I went to bed early and I slept for a long time. On Saturday morning, I got up late, at around 10 o’clock. I had my breakfast and then I had a cup of coffee.
I didn’t feel well because of my problems at work. So, I put on my clothes, and I went for a walk to the countryside.
I took a bus and fifty minutes later, I was in the woods. There were many people in the woods. Some walked alone, some walked with their families or friends. They all looked very happy. It was a nice autumn day. The air was warm and it was sunny. I started to feel better, too.
After some time, I came to a small lake. There were many green trees around it. There were not many people around the lake. It was nice and quiet.
There was one bench near the lake. I wanted to sit, but there was a man on the bench. He looked at me and smiled.
“Do you want to sit here?” he asked. “Please, come. There is a lot of place here.”
“Thank you,” I said and I sat down on the bench. The man had old trousers, an old shirt and old shoes. They were old, but they were clean. He looked very happy.
“Would you like some coffee?” he asked. He had a bottle in his hand. There was hot coffee in the bottle. “I have two cups,” he said. “Please, hold this cup.”
I took the cup and waited. He put some hot coffee in it. Then I took the second cup and he did the same thing. When the cups were full, he put the bottle into his bag and then he took one cup from me.
“Thank you very much,” I said and I drank from the cup. The coffee was strong and sweet. It was very nice, and I felt happy.
The man smiled. “Do you like it? I always put sugar into my coffee. Some people don’t take sugar.”
“I put sugar into my coffee, too,” I smiled. “Your coffee is very good. I like it very much, thank you.”
“I am happy that you like it,” he said and after that he was quiet. We did not speak for a few minutes. We only looked at the lake and drank our coffee. It was a very nice feeling.
“Do you often come to this lake?” I asked.
“Yes, I do. I come here every weekend,” he said. Then we drank our coffee and we were quiet again.
After some time, I spoke again. “Can I ask you something?” I asked him.
He looked at me and said: “Of course, you can. Please, what is your question?”
“How do you do it?”
“How do I do what?” he asked.
“You do not look rich, but you look very happy,” I answered.
“How do you know that I am not rich?” he smiled. I did not know, it’s true. But he had old trousers, an old shirt and old shoes. I thought he was poor, but I did not tell him that, of course.
He drank from his coffee and looked at the lake. Then he said: “Some people are poor, and they are unhappy because they are not rich.”
I was quiet.
“And some people are rich, but they are unhappy because they are rich,” he said and drank from his cup. Then he looked at me and said: “Can I ask you something?”
“Sure, please ask,” I said.
“Are you happy now?” he asked.
I thought about it and then I said, “Yes, I am happy. I like this place, I like the coffee, I like talking to you. I am happy now.”
Then he asked, “And were you happy this morning, too?”
“No,” I answered. I was not happy. I have some problems at work.”
The man listened to me. Then he finished his cup and put it into his bag.
“See,” he said and got up from the bench. “Now you know, how I do it.”
I looked at him. I didn’t understand at first.
“Every weekend I come here. I sit on this bench and I drink some sweet coffee. And I am happy,” he said and smiled. “Sorry, but I have to go now. I have to catch my bus.”
“I understand,” I said. “It was very nice to meet you!” I stood up and gave him my hand.
“It was nice to meet you, too,” he said. “Next time, you will bring some coffee with sugar,” he smiled and walked away. I liked this man.
I sat down on the bench again. I still had some coffee in my cup. Everything was quiet now, and I felt happy.
“Next time,” I thought…
because of – kvôli
bench /bentʃ/ – lavička
at first – najprv
next time – nabudúce; inokedy
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