Story：A priceless treasure
【明報專訊】Jeff, a lazy primary six student, admired his grandma, a veteran doctor, ''I want to be a doctor someday!'' He was going to take the final exam that would determine which secondary school he could end up at.
But his family was about to move house. He was reluctant to help move the furniture. ''It's disturbing. I want to do some revision,'' Jeff felt bad about it. After much huffing and puffing, he agreed to help do some chores before leaving. ''Son, there're still many things to do. I'll go with the mover now. Please help clear the clutter in my room,'' Mom ordered. ''Okay...'' Jeff went into the room and saw a huge box containing a hotchpotch of things. ''Arrrrrrrr... It's such a mess!'' He randomly picked a seal engraved with a little flower.
''It must be expensive,'' Jeff put it into his pocket and continued to pack things up. He also found a diary seemingly belonged to a girl called Patricia. He didn't know who she was, but was curious about the content inside. He left with his dad taking away both the seal and Patricia's diary.
''Wowwwwww! It's nice to be here. Such a big flat. I wasn't able to focus on my schoolwork since our previous house was too noisy and crowded,'' Jeff couldn't wait to start living in his new room. He used to live with his mom and dad in the same room. Without any siblings, yet he still thought it was a really unsatisfactory environment.
Jeff was not a hardworking student. He spent the better part of the day watching TV and didn't study at all.
Feeling bored, he paged through Patricia's diary and saw a few interesting lines, ''Our shack was nearly blown off last night... But the flower was still there, unbattered. I have to work harder lest I couldn't be a doctor.''
This became Jeff's priceless treasure.
(by Ian Lam)
◆Food for thought
Sometimes we make up lame excuses for our laziness. In fact, we have much room for improvement. Have you ever found excuses for your work?
■Gear up
Answer the following questions after reading the above story.
1. Jeff's priceless treasure is
( the seal / Grandma's words / the flat) .
2. Jeff's family is packing things because they have to _____________.
3. Both Jeff and his grandma's ideal job is being a _____________.
(Answers on next text)
■Glossary
move house (phr) 搬屋
huff and puff (idiom) 發脾氣
hotchpotch (n) 一堆
lame (n) 無說服力的
[Smarties' Power English 第294期]
