A Brother Like That
A friend of mine named Paul received an automobile from his brother as a Christmas present. On Christmas Eve when Paul came out of his office, a street urchin was walking around the shiny new car, admiring it.
"Is this your car, Mister?" he said.
Paul nodded. "My brother gave it to me for Christmas." The boy was astounded. "You mean your brother gave it to you and it didn’t cost you nothing? Boy, I wish . . ." He hesitated.
Of course Paul knew what he was going to wish for. He was going to wish he had a brother like that. But what the lad said jarred Paul all the way down to his heels. "I wish," the boy went on, "That I could be a brother like that."
Paul looked at the boy in astonishment, then impulsively he added, "Would you like to take a ride in my car?"
"Oh yes, Id love that."
After a short ride, the boy turned with his eyes aglow, said, "Mister, would you mind driving in front of my house?"
Paul smiled a little. He thought he knew what the lad wanted. He wanted to show his neighbors that he could ride home in a big automobile. But Paul was wrong again. "Will you stop where those two steps are?" the boy asked.
He ran up the steps. Then in a little while Paul heard him coming back, but he was not coming fast. He was carrying his little crippled brother. He sat him down on the bottom step, then sort of squeezed up against him and pointed to the car.
"There she is, Buddy, just like I told you upstairs. His brother gave it to him for Christmas and it didn’t cost him a cent. And some day Im gonna give you one just like it . . . then you can see for yourself all the pretty things in the Christmas windows that Ive been trying to tell you about." Paul got out and lifted the lad to the front seat of his car. The shining-eyed older brother climbed in beside him and the three of them began a memorable holiday ride. That Christmas Eve, Paul learned
what Jesus meant when he said: "It is more blessed to give . . . "
on my birthday two years ago, many special things happened on me. and i would
remember them forever.
that morning, i rode my bike to school happily as usual. on my way to the
classroom, i saw some of my classmates. but when they saw me, they rushed away. that made me confused. because they would talk to me or play jokes on me before. but it was strange today.
when i came into the classroom, i found the atmosphere was quite strange.
everybody looked at me and laughed loudly. suddenly they all said in good order,“happy birthday to you!” then they began to sing “happy birthday to you~~~~~~” that made me moved. i never told anyone about my birthday, how did they know? i believed they must have done a lot of things. at that moment, i found nothing to say but thanks instead!
after school, a thing coming as a surprise happened on me on my way back home. when i was riding suddenly a crowed of people rushed out to stopped my bike.i recogized them at once. they were my senior classmates. they all comlained to me,“why don't you tell us about your birthday? don't you fear that we will let you stand treat? this time you owe us.” then each of them gave a gift and a card with best wishes to me. i was deeply moved again. i suggested having a dinner together. but they all refused because of the time. then they left me saying we would ask you to pay us another day!
when i got back home, i thought of everything happened today. suddenly i felt so happy because i had such great friends around me. i thanked them from the bottom of my heart. i would value the precious friendship forever!
She kindled a third match. Again shot up the flame; and now she was sitting under a most beautiful Christmas tree ,far larger, and far more prettily decked out, than the one she had seen last Christmas eve through the glass doors of the rich merchant's house. Hundreds of wax-tapers lighted up the green branches, and tiny painted figures, such as she had seen in the shop-windows, looked down from the tree upon her. The child stretched out her hands towards them in delight, and in that moment the lights of the match warm quenched; still, however, the Christmas candles burned higher and higher， she beheld them beaming like stars in heaven; one of them fell, the lights streaming behind it like a long, fiery tail.
“Now some one is dying,” said the little girl, softly, for she had been told by her old grandmother， the only person who had ever been kind to her, and who was now dead that whenever a star falls an immortal spirit returns to the God who gave it.
She struck yet another match against the wall; it flamed up, and surrounded by its light, appeared before her that same dear grandmother, gentle and loving as always, but bright and happy as she had never looked during her lifetime.
她擦着了第三根火柴，又冒出了火焰。现在她觉得正坐在非常美丽的圣诞树下面，比上次圣诞节透过那富商家的玻璃门看到的那株还要大、还要美。这株树的绿枝上点燃着许许多多的蜡烛，颜色瑰丽的图画，就象橱窗里挂着的那些一样漂亮，仿佛在向她眨眼。小姑娘把两只手伸过去，火柴又熄灭了。然而圣诞树上的烛光越升越高。她看到它们变成了明亮的星星，有一颗落下来，在天上划出一道长长的火丝。
“现在又有一个什么人死了。”小姑娘说。因为她的老祖母——一个唯一待她好的人，现在已经死了，曾经告诉过她，天上落下一颗星，地上就有一个灵魂回到曾赋于他生命的上帝那里去。
她在墙上又擦了一根火柴，火光把四周照亮了。在亮光里，亲爱的和生前一样的祖母出现了。她依然是那么的慈爱和温和，然而那快活和幸福的样子却是她生前从未有过的