Hope in my arms

Last year I was invited to participate in a carnival for Tuesday’s Child – an organization that helps children with AIDS.

All the children that had ______ in one particular room could paint a square on a piece of cloth. Later the squares would be sewn(缝) together to ____   a quilt. The quilt would be ____ to a man who had devoted his life to the   ____   and would soon be retiring .

The kids were given paints in bright colors and asked to paint something that would make the quilt _____. As I looked around at all the ______ , I saw pink hearts, blue clouds, orange sunrises and red flowers. The pictures were all bright and ______ . All except one.

One boy was painting a heart, ______ it was dark and lifeless. It _______   the bright colors that his fellow artists had used.

I asked why. He told me he was very sick and that his ______ was not ever going to get better. He looked straight into my eyes and said. “There is no _____   in my life.” I told him I was _____ and I could understand why he had made his heart a dark color. I told him that even though we couldn’t make him better, we can give ______ , which can really help when he is feeling _____ . I told him that if he would like, I would be happy to give him one. He crawled onto my lap. I thought my own heart would ____   for this sweet little boy. He sat there for a long time. Finally he _____   down to finish his coloring. As I was getting ready to   ____   home, I felt a tug (猛拽) on my jacket. Standing there was the little boy,     _____ . He said, “My heart is changing   ______ . It is getting brighter, I think those hugs really do   ______ .” On my way home I felt my own heart. It too had changed to a brighter color.

A businessman had two sons. While he gave the younger son a lot of love and gifts, he neglected(忽视) the elder son. It was completely puzzling (令人费解) and no one knew why.

When the boys ______, they were asked to manage the father's business. The elder son was ______ about the business. From morning till late in the evening, he was busy working. Within a few years, he ran the business very well and ______ expanded (扩大) it. What about the younger son? He didn't have much to do ______ having a good time every day. But the father______ that his favorite son would be a success. If the elder son could be a ______ businessman, surely the younger one, with a higher education, would do much better.

A few years later, the ______ of his decision became clear. Uninterested in business, the younger son continued spending his time enjoying ______. And he went out of business. But the elder son's far smaller share (份额) of business had expanded and he had shown everyone that he was a good decision maker. Being ashamed (羞愧的) at the end of the event, the father met the elder son and was angry with the younger one. The elder son, who was ______ to all this quietly, suddenly said he wanted to set up an independent business and live on his own. “Why?” asked the father. “I blame (责备) one person for my brother's failure, ______ it's not him. You can't blame children for the faults (过失) of their parent, can you? ” asked the elder son.

I have known how well Mother could keep a trust until I was going through her things after she died. I discovered something I had long _________, which happened in my childhood.

One night, as I lay in bed, I _________ my bad manners towards Mother on that day. “ I must make things _________ before sleep. ” I thought.

Quietly I _________ out of bed and tiptoed into the hall. The _________ from the living room shone dimly, while Mother was downstairs.

I _________ wrote a note asking for Mother’s forgiveness. I didn’t want my siblings to know our _________, so I added a postscript; “ Please don’t let anyone else see this. ” Then I quietly moved into my parents’ bedroom and put the letter under Mother’s.

The next morning, when I made my bed, I _________ found a return note under my pillow. Mother wrote that she loved me and forgave me.

This became my way of _________ whenever I talked back or disobeyed. Mother always left a return note, but she never spoke about it. Even when we were grown-ups, she never mentioned our secret when my siblings recalled our ____________ .

When Mother passed away, I had to ____________ her personal belongings. I came across a bundle of notes tied with a faded ribbon. On top was a message in her handwriting. It read, “ In the evening of my death, please ____________ these. ”

I ____________ her packet and glanced at the handwriting on the bottom. To my surprise I ____________ my childish writing, “ Please don’t let anyone else see this. ”

I gently ____________ the unopened bundle in the wastebasket for the rubbish burner. “ Lord, ” I prayed, “ make me like my mother. ”