英語溫馨夜讀I PART2 03 The Gift 禮物

[00:00.55]The Gift 禮物 [00:07.00]It was Christmas 1961. I was teaching in a small town in Ohio [00:13.46]where my twenty-seven third graders eagerly anticipated the great day of gifts giving. [00:19.37]Each day the children produced some new wonder—strings of popcorn, hand-made trinkets, [00:26.70]and German bells made from wallpaper samples, which we hung from the ceiling. [00:31.62]Through it all she remained aloof, watching from afar, seemingly miles away. [00:38.29]I wondered what would happen to this quiet child, [00:42.16]once so happy, now so suddenly withdrawn. [00:46.28]I hoped the festivities would appeal to her. But nothing did. [00:51.42]The day of gift-giving finally came. [00:54.49]We oohed and aahed over our handiwork as the presents were exchanged. [00:59.85]Through it all, she sat quietly watching. [01:03.13]I had made a special pouch for her, red and green with white lace. [01:08.49]I wanted very much to see her smile. [01:11.56]She opened the package so slowly and carefully. [01:15.93]I waited but she turned away. [01:18.77]After school the children left in little groups, [01:23.05]but she lingered, watching them go out the door. [01:26.10]I sat down to catch my breath, [01:28.86]hardly aware of what was happening when she came to me with outstretched hands, [01:33.55]bearing a small white box, unwrapped and slightly soiled, [01:38.47]as though it had been held many times by unwashed, childish hands. [01:43.06]“For me?” I asked with a weak smile. [01:46.65]She said not a word, but nodded her head. [01:49.74]I took the box and gingerly opened it. [01:53.31]There inside, glistening green, lay a golden chain. [01:57.94]In a flash I knew—she had made it for her mother, a mother she would never see again, [02:04.94]a mother who would never hold her or brush her hair or share a funny story, [02:10.09]a mother who would never again hear her childish joys or sorrows. [02:15.12]A mother who had taken her own life just three weeks before. [02:19.83]I held out the chain. She took it in both her hands, reached forward, [02:25.19]and secured the simple clasp at the back of my neck. [02:28.80]She stepped back then as if to see that all was well. [02:33.17]I looked down at the golden chain, then back at the giver, [02:37.85]“Maria, it is so beautiful. She would have loved it.” [02:42.47]Neither of us could stop the tears. [02:45.65]She stumbled into my arms and we wept together. [02:49.83]And for that brief moment I became her mother, [02:53.52]for she had given me the greatest gift of all: herself.

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