Hamid gazed steadily at the illuminated planet as it climbed the sky in its own slow and gentle fashion. Then the sky paled. The stars almost vanished from sight and Hamid knew that it would soon be morning. He walked among the plants to see how much water had reached the crops during the night, stopping at the waterline in the field of rice and glancing round as the sky darkened once more. It was the darkness which comes between the first appearance of light and the dawning of the day. Hamid returned to the shelter and called to the worker to light a fire so that they could warm the bread they had with them for breakfast.
On the far horizon the sun sent out its heralders. They made their way to the mosque where Hamid sat quietly outside staring in wonder at the fabulous East where a sky
