An old man was walking in the desert with his donkey when he reached a village.

The people welcomed him with everything they could, offering him hospitality, taking care of his donkey and feeding him. While having dinner, he was surprised to be offered camel milk, as it is of notoriously bad taste. He thus asked about it and was told that the village has been cursed with an everlasting drought, and that the people have resorted to saving however little water they could find for crops.

“Truth be told, I am one of the wise.”, he said, “I know how to bring you rain. However, you must first bring me a wide bucket full of water, for I need some to bring more.”

The next morning, all of the villagers heard of his saying, and started collecting every drop of water they still had in reserve. In the end, there was barely enough to qualify for a bucket, and they gave it to the man. He then took the water, and walked within his host’s house.

There, he took off his dirty clothes, and started washing them. A curious one of the kids saw him through the window, and went on to alert everyone around. By the time they arrived, angry and shouting, it was already too late. The old man has washed all his clothes and was calmly hanging them.

“Shame! Shame on you, old man, for wasting our water when our kids don’t have enough to drink!” growled the chief.

But as soon as he finished speaking, the sky darkened as the clouds gathered around the village. It started raining and it did not stop for 5 days straight. People got their fill, and everyone’s reserves were overflowing. The old man was treated as a guest of honor and a hero, and the chief apologized profusely for ever doubting him.

Only when he was about to leave, had the kid gathered the courage to ask about how he did it.

“It’s simple,” said the old man “this always happens when I hang my clothes to dry.”