The notebook

 

When Zuzu wasn't happy, Nani (grand- mother) always told her to write down in her notebook what she was grateful
(سپاسگزار) for. It was only Monday and Zuzu wasn't happy. She didn't want to be sad, but she was feeling afraid ( احساس ترس ). And there were still 6 more days in the week. This was not a good way to start the week. So Zuzu got her notebook and wrote down ( نوشت ) what she was grateful for:
1) Nani
2) my pillow
3)  ?

     She could only think of two things. 

 Just then
( درست آن موقع ) she heard Nani calling her to come eat. Zuzu went into the kitchen to help. They were having pilau. But there was no chicken today. There was just rice, a little carrot, and a few raisins ( چند عدد کشمش ).
     When they started to eat, Zuzu told Nani  she could only think of 2 things to be grateful for and they were the same (همان) things she was always grateful for!
    Nani smiled and said, "What about raisins ( کشمش )? You could add raisins to your grateful list."
     "But there aren't very many today and there's never ( هرگز ) chicken in the pilau now," said Zuzu quietly ( بی سر و صدا ). Zuzu knew you could not buy chicken in the market now.
     Nani said, "I will give you 5 of my raisins. I will only eat one. You will have 11 raisins. Is that enough ( کافی ) to put 'raisins' on your grateful list?"
     "But I don't want you to just have 1 raisin, Nani! One raisin is nothing," said Zuzu.

    "Oh, no, my Zuzu!  You're wrong ( اشتباه ), my dear one. One raisin is a gift. It is very special. Do you know where this raisin came from?" asked Nani.
     Zuzu said, "No".
     So Nani told her the story of raisins. "First there was a little seed ( دانه ) a farmer put in the ground. He gave it water every day. After 6 weeks a leaf ( برگ ) and vine ( انگور انگور ) came up in the hard ground and the little vine started to grow ( برای رشد ). The vine grew for 3 years and the farmer took care of it every day.  After 3 years the farmer saw little grapes start to grow until they were ready to pick
(برای جمع آوری)."
     "Three years!" said Zuzu, "What a long time to wait."
     "But that is only if the farmer takes good care of his plants," said Nani. "It takes even longer if there is not much rain.
     "When the farmer can finally pick all his grapes, he must let them dry (خشک شدن) in the sun for 3 weeks. After 3 weeks they become tasty ( خوش طعم ) raisins. The farmer puts the raisins in sacks ( گونی ), puts the sacks on his donkeys and walks to the market to sell ( فروختن ) them.
     "Then, you and I go to the market and see the farmer's beautiful raisins and buy them for our dinner. And . . . after 3 long years of work, you eat them all up in 5 minutes!"
     Zuzu laughed. It was good to laugh. She did not eat her raisins quickly ( به سرعت ) today. She ate each one very slowly ( به آرامی ), thinking how special ( خاص ) it was. When she finished eating her rice, she wrote down 'raisins' in her grateful notebook. She wasn't sad any more ( دیگر هیچ ).