【明報專訊】"I hereby summon..." On the park bench were two primary school students playing a trading card game. They "asked for" help from monsters printed on cards and let them "battle" with each other.

Tim was one of the contestants. He got a handful of shiny, limited editions from his best friend Don, who was about to graduate and would like to give up this time-consuming and expensive habit. Tim did treasure these cards, so much so he had bought a card album to keep them safe.

With these cards at hand, Tim became invincible and defeated all the best players near the park. One of his playmates Anthony was jealous and called upon several kids to help carry out his prank (惡作劇).

"Hey Tim, your cards look great! Would you mind letting me take a look?" He asked.

"Sure, why not?" Tim handed Anthony his shiny cards.

"Wowwwwww... I want half of them!"

"Of course not! Would you please give me back the cards?"

Anthony suddenly ran away and when he came back, he said, "I've just thrown them all".

"What! Where have you thrown them?"

"I won't tell you..."

Tim was helpless. He asked for his classmates to boycott Anthony unless he paid five hundred dollars in compensation. Anthony was terrified. He didn't expect that. And these childish antics soon reached the ears of Miss Wong, the class teacher.

She asked the two kids to see her, and first talked to Anthony. Tim saw Anthony nod his head and just keep saying "yes". After five minutes, Miss Wong dismissed Anthony and turned to him.

"Anthony did do something wrong. But you too. He's just a kid and won't be able to pay you such a large sum of money. What's worse, you two are obsessed with toys rather than schoolwork!"

Both Tim and Anthony were punished for their deeds. They were made to stand in front of the class for two hours.

"I'm very sorry for what I did..." Anthony said.

"I forgive you... It was also my fault."

"Ummmm... Actually I didn't throw away the cards. I put it deep into your locker..."

"What!"

◆Food for thought

Have you ever fought with your friends or classmates over trivial (瑣碎的) matters like which TV programme to watch or which cartoon character is the best? It's easy to lose friends if we don't pay attention to the core part of friendship — appreciation and tolerance for others.

■Glossary

time-consuming (adj) 花時間的

treasure (v) 珍愛

childish (adj) 幼稚的

antics (n) 滑稽可笑的行為

[Smarties' Power English 第249期]