《You Cant Judge a William by Its Cover》英语美文欣赏
My preschoolers arrived for the first day of school. Six bouncing, bubbling four-year-olds parading a wardrobe of new, primary-colored clothing. Each head of hair was neatly combed or secured with a fancy bow. Number seven arrived a bit late and came with his own personal style. His name was William.
A thin, gray T-shirt stretched across his chest. It looked washed but never bleached, dried but never folded. The faded words from a faraway theme park emblazoned the front, positioned neatly between the stains of what appeared to be a red drink and mustard. William wore the shirt proudly, like a soldier displaying his stripes. His jeans, worn and discolored at the knees, showed the personality of an industrious little boy. Batman beamed heroically below the Velcro fasteners of his mud-caked shoes.
The children continued to sheepishly enter while William carelessly checked out the art center. Two little girls came through the door with hooded topcoats, while a dark-haired boy carried a new corduroy jacket. Only a thin red parka, unzipped and untied, warmed William.
Weeks passed and William continued to appear each morning amidst scrubbed faces and everybody else"s mommy. He came and went escorted by an anonymous day-care person in a schoolhouse-marked van.
I longed to sneak a brush across his ruffled blond hair or even straighten the half-on, half-off jacket he refused to remove. I daydreamed of escaping for an hour with his shirt, dousing it quickly in water and bleach, then returning it to him, still warm from the dryer. Worst of all, I imagined William"s parents, uncaring, uninvolved, never attending to their son"s needs. I wished for him a day that was special with a shirt that still had creases from the plastic bag or a pair of shoes that squeaked new rubber across the linoleum. I wondered for what William"s parents wished.
One day I met William and his mom and dad at the neighborhood market. He sat comfortably in the shopping cart, positioned between the frozen waffles and the gallon of milk.
"There"s Miss Mary!" he proudly announced and marveled that his teacher bought groceries at a store. I exchanged handshakes with William"s parents and our conversation began. Suddenly, I saw much more than what William had been wearing. I saw the love in his family.
William"s mom spoke a quiet hello, adjusting her uniformed blouse as her son continued to resound my name. Shuffling her coupons, she seemed to struggle for conversation. Occasionally, she reached to straighten the scraggly locks of William"s hair or brush away the crumbs of his afternoon snack.
I discovered that William"s dad worked as a maintenance man for a nearby industrial shop. His days were long, tiring and often unpredictable. He told me how he"d never finished school but was "real glad" William was getting to learn a lot. Dad had arranged to take the next Friday off, one of his three vacation days, to come sit in the classroom and see, as he put it, "how my son is doing." When his boss told him that might not be possible, he proudly "stood tall and insisted it was important, real important." He looked sad when he said his wife wouldn"t be able to come with him.
"Her boss won"t let her. She wanted to, but there"s no one to take her shift - and besides, there"s been lots of layoffs, we couldn"t take a chance."
"My mom got off early today!" William said. I rejoiced in his pleasure, sensing it was a luxury seldom enjoyed by the tired woman standing before me.
On Friday, William"s dad came as promised. He towered over the four-year-olds when he sat in the tiny chair and colored diligently with the markers. He smiled as he surveyed the room. Then his face became serious and he turned toward me and asked, "Miss Mary, is William listening to you?" I assured him of William"s attentiveness.
"Is he being polite and saying "yes, ma"am" and "no, ma"am"? Because that"s real important to me and his mom."
With a weathered hand on his son"s shoulder, William"s dad continued to speak of a love stronger than the weave of any cloth.
"We want him to learn a bunch of things, but most importantly that"s why we"re sending him to this school. We want him to grow up and do what"s right "cause that"s the right thing to do. We want him to be fair to everyone and not just look at what somebody has or the color of his skin."
I stood there, embarrassed with my own prejudice. For months, I had judged this family by their son"s appearance. Before me stood a plain and simple father who didn"t need a woolen jacket with an embroidered logo or new denim jeans to show how he cared for his child. He had chosen for his son something not found in a store or reached from a shelf. He had chosen goodness and kindness and respect. He had given him the gift of love and today, the gift of time.
A few days after the visit, William came to me on the playground. Oddly, I didn"t notice his shirt or even if his hair was combed. It was a bit chilly, but he ran across the schoolyard as if it was a summer day, arms outstretched, catching each lift of the breeze. His radiant smile spread wide across his face.
"You know, Miss Mary," he said half out of breath. "My daddy and mommy love me a whole bunch!"
"I know, William, I know. I see that love every day when I look into your handsome face." I hugged him and off he ran into the wind.
-
2023年经典有哲理的句子合集95句
情感,只是我们对它形成了一种明确的观念。下面是小编为大家收集的有哲理的句子95句,欢迎大家借鉴与参考,希望对大家有所帮助。1、释道成:我们低头,是为了看清自己走的路;我们修行,是为了保持心的觉知。心灵的房间,不打扫就会落满灰尘。扫地除尘,能够使黯然的心变得亮堂...
-
简短治愈早安文案大全60句精选
永远不要提前就害怕生活里出现的任何意外,因为你越害怕,它就越会到来。早安!以下是小编为大家推荐的治愈早安文案,希望能够帮助到大家。1、愿你有高跟鞋也有跑鞋,喝茶也喝酒。愿你有勇敢的朋友,有牛逼的对手。愿你对过往的一切情深意重,但从不回头。愿你特别美丽,特别...
-
关于秋天的句子15篇【通用】
在现实生活或工作学习中,大家都看到过许多经典的句子吧,根据用途和语气,句子可以分为陈述句、疑问句、祈使句、感叹句。那么问题来了,到底什么样的句子才经典呢?以下是小编收集整理的关于秋天的句子,欢迎大家借鉴与参考,希望对大家有所帮助。关于秋天的句子11.秋姑娘...
-
2023年经典哲理的句子汇编77条
理想是石,敲出星星之火,理想是火,点燃熄灭的灯,理想是灯,照亮夜航的路,理想是路,引你走到黎明。下面是小编为大家整理推荐的哲理的句子77条,供大家参考借鉴,希望可以帮助到有需要的朋友。1、时间没有尽头,生命有其长短。在无限的时光隧道里,计较太多就是对有限的生命的一...
相关文章
- 英语阅读:VIT declines to acquire Ang Mo Kio property
- Time To Stop Worrying About Invasive Species美文欣赏
- 英语美文阅读:Kerry: Anti-IS Coalition Could Contribute to B
- A Lifeguard at Johns Beach Saved a Drowning Child,A Lifeguar英语作文
- 英语阅读:Are You Tricked by These Optical Illusions
- 最新《Fate/Stay Night Unlimited Blade Works》经典名句
- 低碳生活英语写作范文:An activity about low carbon living
- How Do My Parents Feel About My Education英语作文
- 英语《Module 6 Unit 1 You can play football well》的教案设计
- Chinas Liu to seek injury advice in US soon英语作文