孩子，你已经长大

湖南 何高伦

暑期的一份工作，让本文中的主人公明白了成长的意义。

题材体裁 文章词数 建议用时生活 记叙文386 7分钟

My dad, George, only had an eighth grade education.He was a quiet man and he didn't understand my world of school activities. From age 14, he worked. And his dad, Albert, took the money my dad earned and used it to pay family expenses.

I didn't really understand his world either. He was a livestock trucker, and I thought that I would surpass (超过)anything he had accomplished by the time I walked across the stage at high school graduation.

The summer before my eighth grade, I was one of a group of boys that a neighboring farmer hired to work in his field. He explained our basic task, the tractor fired up and we were off, riding down the field looking for weeds to spray with chemicals. After a short way, the farmer stopped and pointed at a weed which we missed. Then we began again. It was tiring work, but I looked forward to the pay, even though I wasn't sure how much it would amount to.

At home, my dad said, “A job is a big step to growing up. I'm glad you will be contributing to the household.” My dad's words made me realize that my earnings might not be mine as I wished. My labors lasted about two weeks, and the farmer said there might be more work, but I wasn't interested. I thought it was not fair that I had to contribute my money.

The pay arrived at last. Although the job was very tiring, I was very happy in my heart for I got something from my work. The toil (劳累的工作) of labor was forgotten for the time being. “How much money have you earned?” Dad asked. I was surprised, reluctant to say my income. The next morning,my dad's livestock truck started running. I saw my father's hard-working figure and thought of his words “A job is a big step to growing up”.

I understood immediately that my labor was very hard, but my growth and our whole family had been depending on the hard work of my parents! Dad never complained about unfairness and he has worked for so many years! In the evening, Dad came back. I proudly took out my own money and handed it to Dad.

Reading Check

1. What can we know about the author's father?

A. He lived a rich life.

B. He was well-educated.

C. He was an outgoing man.

D. He worked at a young age.

2. What was the author hired to do by a neighboring farmer?

A. Distinguish different chemicals.

B. Deal with harmful weeds.

C. Wash tractors.

D. Watch the field.

3. What does the underlined word “reluctant” mean in paragraph 5?

A. Delighted.

B. Content.

C. Unwilling.

D. Proud.

Language Study

Complete the following sentences using the proper forms of the given words in the box.

earn expense accomplishment basic immediately depend

1. She must __________a lot of money.

2. My knowledge of French is pretty __________.

3. The garden was transformed at great __________.

4. Many adults still __________on their parents greatly.

5. It was one of his greatest __________.

6. The hospital says she's out of __________danger.