A Man and His Word

In a used furniture business, unlike new, you cannot order stock (存货) from a catalogue. People call in, and you have to go out and make an offer. “You can’t ______ what you don’t have.” my father would say.

When I was aged thirteen, my father lost his store ______ , a one-armed guy who could do more with his one arm than many will do with two. With his manager gone, my father came to me. “Will you come in while I go out to ______ the day’s calls until I find the ________ person?” he asked.

The store has tens of thousands of ______ . “People like to bargain,” he told me, “So I don’t ______ prices. You just have to know a range.”

He took me around. “A quarter-horse motor you can sell ______ four dollars. For a refrigerator, depending on the ______, you can sell for thirty-five dollars to sixty dollars. However, if it has a freezer that goes well, sell it for eighty dollars, in ______ condition, maybe one hundred dollars. Dishes come in with a houseful of furniture, and I don’t even ______ them in when I give a price. You can sell them for a cent to a dollar. Something really nice.”

Every day after ______ , I would ride to the store. Soon after, I was writing up a sales slip(纸条)for an attractive plate when my father walked in. I had asked a dollar and the guy did not ______ . I was very pleased. My father glanced down at what I was doing, ________ to the customer and said, “You sure got a bargain today. My employee gave you the __________ and that’s the price.”

Afterward, I asked my father, “what was that all about ?”

It turned out that it was an antique plate, worth a few hundred dollars. I was ______ . Here I was ______ to help my father in the business but instead I was losing money for him.

He said, “I could’ve ______ the sales if I’d wanted to. You were just writing up the slip and hadn’t yet taken the money. Besides, by civil law, you’re under ______ . But, a man stands by his word and the word of his ______ .”

The deal cost my father a small amount of money, but I learned a ___ lesson in integrity(正直).

I was in the back seat of a yellow taxi grabbing my mother’s hand like a 5-year-old. But in fact, I was 28 years old, still ________, and hoping my mom would make it all right.

We were coming home from the ________, and I was in a full-body brace, having survived spinal (脊柱的) surgery exactly a week earlier and headed to my tiny apartment in San Francisco. Each time the taxi ________ over the steep hills, I felt as if my bones were ________. I doubted that I would get hurt again during the journey.

I was about to open my mouth to shout at the driver or at least ________, when my mom leaned forward and said cheerfully, “Thank you!” The driver glanced at us ________ from his mirror. “You’re just the best driver I’ve ever seen,” my mom continued. “These hills must be so ________ to drive on. And I am so ________. My daughter had surgery on her back and is so ________. Because of you, she’s going to get home safe. Thank you. You’re wonderful.”

In the mirror, I could see the driver ________ proudly. I felt a flash of ________, but before I had a chance to ________ my mother’s words, a miracle happened. The driver slowed down. He stretched his neck left and right to ________ a smooth ride before making each turn. Indeed, he drove us home like the best driver I’d ever seen.

In that moment of ________, what my wise mom had instinctively done was only obvious to me: ________ is powerful.

Feeding the stray cats (流浪猫) in my neighborhood used to be part of my daily routine.

Last month, my favorite cat named Ginger ________ a litter of cute babies! Thrilled and excited, I ________ them a new cat house, food bowls and even a large pack of cat food. I ________ the whole package of love and care behind the bushes so that they’d be safe and sound.

However, a few days later I found what I bought for Ginger was ________ ! I started looking for Ginger and her house right away. To my ________ , a security guard showed up. “I know what you’re looking for,” said the middle-aged man. “________ . The cat family is safe, and they didn’t need those things.”

My mind was filled with questions and anger, but he seemed ________ . “Ginger is an ________ creature. She can manage herself without you. I ________ your willingness to help, but Ginger should take responsibility for herself. ________ , by providing her with everything, you’re making her more and more dependent on ________ . You’ve been making life way too ________ for them—and that’s no good for any wildlife.”

I understood his ________ . For Ginger and her babies, my care and love are a ________ , but as a helper, I was doing too much. I should let them be who they really are. A ________ doesn’t always have to “help”.