The Proud Man at the Food Bank
A free A2-level English story for language learners, readable online in 4 languages, with an option to listen via the free Storyteller app.
An old man comes to the food bank to help, not to take food, and Damien finds a way to thank him.
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Damien worked at the food bank every Saturday. He gave bags of food to people who needed them.
One Saturday at ten, an old man came in. He wore a clean, old coat, and his back was very straight.
"Good morning," Damien said. "Can I help you?"
"I am not here for food," the man said. "I am here to help. Do you need someone to work?"
Damien saw the thin coat and the tired hands. He understood. "You came at the right time," he said. "We have too many boxes of cans and not enough hands."
The old man smiled a little. "Show me," he said.
He sorted cans for three hours. He put the beans, soup, and tomatoes in neat lines. Then he looked at the big shelf by the door. "This one is crooked," he said. "Do you have a screwdriver?"
Damien found one. The old man fixed the shelf in ten minutes.
"I worked with wood for forty years," he said.
"You are better than all of us," Damien said.
At one o'clock, the old man put on his coat. Damien filled a bag with rice, beans, soup, bread, and apples.
"Every helper takes a bag home," he said. "It is the rule here."
The old man looked at the bag. Then he looked at Damien. "Then I will take it," he said. He held it with both hands. "Thank you. I will come back next Saturday."
