Week 3 (Storytelling): The Beggar Businessman

I check my watch. It reads 9:15am. I am waiting at Starbucks for my grande caffe mocha. I told the workers precisely how I wanted it: no sugar, no whipped cream, extra dry, with half skim and half full milk, no two percent milk, and two shots of caramel syrup, but mix the syrup with the milk before adding it to the coffee. Can you believe these college students can’t get a simple order right? Don’t they know there are actually people with real jobs?

Finally, the barista boy calls out, “Grande caffe mocha for John!” I walk up to the counter for my drink. Then, as I was reaching for my drink, I could have sworn the barista boy say, “For riches are not for ever: and doth the crown endure to every generation?”

I give the barista a confused look. “What did you say to me, boy?”

“Enjoy your coffee, sir,” smiles the barista boy.

I eye him and give him one last look, then walk out. I don’t have time for this.

If you do not know me, whom you really should, my name is John Hagag. I am the president of Specci Inc. Ever heard of the term "multimillionaire"? I’m a multibillionaire. My company is worth six billion dollars. On top of being filthy rich, I was also born with handsome looks. I have been on the cover of hundreds of magazines from Gentlemen’s Quarterly to Time Magazine. I have won People magazine’s most handsome businessman for three years straight. You could call me the King of New York City.

So, I am about to walk into my office building, when a mischievous teenager suddenly rolls by on his skateboard and snatches my wallet right out of my back pocket.

I yell, “SECURITY! That PUNK has my wallet! SECURITY!”

However, they are too slow. Even my grandmother in a wheelchair moves faster than these oafs. I start chasing the kid. This punk has skills on his board. I can give him that. He swiftly dodges the massive crowds of people. After six blocks, he makes a right turn into a deserted alley.

“There you are, kid. Stop with the games and give me back my wallet. I’m reporting you to the police.”

“You are very wrong, sir. I am not a kid. I am a genie.”

Then the skater transforms into the barista boy from this morning. I am speechless. He changes again. This time, he changes to me. I am astonished. My eyes bulge out of their eye sockets. Finally, the security guards catch up to us. They push me, yes, me onto the ground and handcuff me.

“Get off of me! Don’t you know who I am! I am John Hagag! The John Hagag!”

I look down at my reflection in the muddy puddles on the ground. That’s not me, but it is me. I look completely different. My shiny black hair is now a dirty brown color. My nose looks like it was broken at one point, my face is dirty and sagging. There are deep wrinkles on my forehead and bags under my tired eyes.

“Let him go,” says the genie. “He is not a problem anymore. I have my wallet back.”


They take off the handcuffs and leave me on the ground. As they are walking away, the genie gives me a smirk and winks at me. How can this be? What happened to my life? I walk out on to the streets and try to convince passers by, “I am John Hagag! I am the president of Specci. I am People’s magazine most handsome businessman! Please, a genie stole my identity! You must believe me.” I continue this for a week and no one believes me.

Discouraged, I sit on the corner of Main and 2^nd. A little nine-year-old girl stands in front of me and hands me spare change. My stomach cries in pain. When was the last time I ate? I accept it. I continue to sit on that corner and more pedestrians offer me their pennies and dimes. Someone hands me five dollars; tears of joy gush out of my eyes. Five dollars have never felt so valuable. After a month of begging on the streets, I look in the reflection of the shopping window. I look pathetic. My torn and ragged clothes hang on my frail body. My face has sunken more. My eyes look empty and lost.

I start to cry. In that instant, I decide that I can no longer beg. I need to make a change in my life. I go to a public library to start a resume. I buy some decent clothes from the Salvation Army and clean up myself as much as I can. I assume the name James Schultz. After that, I apply to many jobs. Most of them reject me. However, a Starbucks manager takes pity on me and she gives me a job. I start training immediately. Most of my coworkers are much younger than me. They gawk at me like I am a circus freak. The hours are long and customers are very demanding, though I cannot and will not give up because I do not want to go back to the streets. After weeks of hard work, my coworkers begin to accept me and I am promoted to manager after only six months. We laugh and make jokes with each other. Life is great.

One day, a familiar face walks in. It is me, the-John-Hagag me. The genie looks at me and he comes towards me.

“Hello…” he looks at my badge, “…James.”

“Hello,” I respond.

“How have you been? It has been a long time.”

“Times have been rough, but I am still happy and well. Thank you.”

“That is good. I see that you have learned your lesson. Are you ready to return to your old life?”

“No, I cannot. I cannot leave these people. They need me.”

“Do not worry. They will be fine.”

Right then, instead of standing behind the counter, I am in front of it. I look into a mirror hanging on the wall. I am back to my original self. I look over the counter. The barista gives me a wink and hands me a coffee.

“There you go, sir. Have a nice day.”

I look at him and give him a smile. “Thank you, you too.” I walk out of with the biggest smile on my face.

 (Businessman Drinking Coffee Outside Office Building 

by Smart Creatives; source: Visual Photos)

Author's Note - My story is based off of The Beggar King from the Jewish Fairy Tales unit. I chose this story because I really liked the original plot and the meaning behind the story. In the beginning, the main character is an arrogant and narcissistic king without a care for anyone other than himself. After meeting a powerful genie, the king is removed from his throne and he becomes a poor beggar living on the streets of the kingdom he once ruled. After begging in the streets for many months, the king decides to remake himself into a respectable person. He learns to serve others before serving himself. This life-changing event makes him more humble and appreciative of the people around him. Because of this, the genie allows him to return to his original body. Strangely, the king did not originally want to come back because he did not want to abandon the people that needed him. However, the genie convinces him and the king comes back with a completely new attitude and mindset. I did a modern take on this story while trying to stay true to the original characters. Instead of a king, I chose my main character to be a powerful businessman in New York. I kept the genie in the story because it added an interesting touch.

Book: Jewish Fairy Tales and Legends

Author: Gertrude Landa

Year Published: 1919

Web Source: Project Gutenberg