1、The Gift of Forgiveness Christmas Story The Christmas of 1949 we didnt have a tree. My dad had as much pride as anybody, I 1._, so he wouldnt just say that we couldnt 2. _ one. When I 3. _ it, my mother said that we werent going to have one this year, that we couldnt afford one, and even if we could
2、 it was stupid to clutter up your house with a dead tree. （5）I wanted a tree 4. _ though, and I thought in my naive way that if we had one, everybody would feel better. About three days before Christmas, I was out collecting for my paper route. It was fairly late long after dark it was snowing and v
3、ery cold. I went to the apartment building to try to 5. _ a customer who hadnt paid me for nearly （10）two months she owed me seven dollars. Much to my 6. _, she was home. She invited me in and not only did she pay me, but also she gave me a dollar tip! It was a windfall (an amount of money that you
4、get unexpectedly) for me I now had eight whole dollars. What happened next was totally 7. _. On the way home, I walked past a Christmas tree （15）lot and the idea 8. _me. The 9. _ wasnt very good because it was so close to the holiday, but there was this one real nice tree. It had been a very expensi
5、ve tree and no one had bought it; now it was so close to Christmas that the man was afraid no one would. He wanted ten dollars for it, but when I in my gullible ( easily tricked because they are too trusting) （20） innocence told him I only had eight, he said he might sell it for that. I really didnt
6、 want to spend the whole eight dollars on the tree, but it was so pretty that I finally agreed. I 10. _ it all the way home about a mile, I think and I tried hard not to damage it or break off any limbs. （25）The snow helped to cushion (reducing the force) it, and it was still in pretty good 11. _whe
7、n I got home. You cant imagine how proud and excited I was. I propped (resting it somewhere) it up against the railing (a metal fence) on our front porch and went in. My heart was 12. _as I announced that I had a surprise. （30）I got Mom and Dad to come to the front door and then I switched on the po
8、rch light. “Where did you get that tree?” my mother exclaimed. But it wasnt the kind of exclamation that 13. _ pleasure. “I bought it up on Main Street. Isnt it just the most perfect tree you ever saw?” I said, trying to maintain (to make something continue) my enthusiasm. （35）“Where did you get the
9、 money?” Her tone was accusing and it began to 14. _ on me that this wasnt going to 15. _out as I had planned. “From my paper route.” I explained about the customer who had paid me. “And you spent the whole eight dollars on this tree?” she exclaimed. She went into a tirade ( a long angry speech crit
10、icizing someone or something ) about how stupid it （40）was to spend my money on a dumb tree that would be thrown out and burned in a few days. She told me how irresponsible I was and how I was just like my dad with all those foolish, romantic, noble notions (an idea, belief, or opinion) about fairy
11、tales and happy endings and that it was about time I grew up and learned some 16. _ about the realities of life and how to take care of money and spend it on things that were needed and not on silly things. （45）She said that I was going to end up in the poorhouse because I believe in stupid things l
12、ike Christmas trees, things that didnt amount to anything. I just stood there. My mother had never talked to me like that before and I couldnt believe what I was hearing. I felt awful and I began to cry. Finally, she 17. _ out and snapped (to break with a sudden （50） sharp noise) off the porch light
13、. “Leave it there,” she said. “Leave that tree there till it rots, so every time we see it, well all be 18. _ of how stupid the men in this family are.” Then she stormed up the stairs to her bedroom and we didnt see her until the next day. Dad and I brought the tree in and we made a stand for it. （5
14、5）He got out the box of decorations and we decorated it as best as we could; but men arent too good at things like that, and besides, it wasnt the same without mom. There were a few presents under it by Christmas day although I cant remember a single one of them but Mom wouldnt have anything to do w
15、ith it. It was the worst Christmas I ever had. （60）Fast forward to today, Judi and I married in August of 1963, and dad died on October 10 of that year. Over the next eight years, we lived in many places. Mom sort of 19. _ up the year either living with my sister Jary or with us. In 1971 we were liv
16、ing in Wichita, Kansas Lincoln was about seven, Brendan was three and Kristen was a baby. Mom was staying with us during the holidays. On Christmas Eve I stayed up very late. I was （65）totally alone with my thoughts, alternating (keep using one then the other) between joy and melancholy, and I got t
17、o thinking about my paper route, that tree, what my mother had said to me and how Dad had tried to make things better. I heard a noise in the kitchen and 20. _ that it was mom. She couldnt sleep either and had gotten up to make herself a cup of hot tea which was her remedy (a way of dealing with a p
18、roblem （70）or making a bad situation better) for just about everything. As she waited for the water to boil, she walked into the living room and discovered me there. She saw my open Bible and asked me what I was reading. When I told her, she asked if I would read it to her and I did. When the kettle
19、 began to whistle, she went and made her tea. She came back, and we started to visit. I told her how happy I was that she was with us for Christmas and how I wished that Dad could have lived （75）to see his grandchildren and to enjoy this time because he always loved Christmas so. It got very 21. _ f
20、or a moment and then she said, “Do you remember that time on Twelve Mile Road when you bought that tree with your paper route money?” “Yes,” I said, “Ive just been thinking about it you know.” She 22. _ for a long moment, as though she were on the verge (to be at the point where （80） something is ab
21、out to happen) of something that was 23. _ up so deeply inside her soul that it might take surgery to get it out. Finally, great tears started down her face and she cried, “Oh, son, please forgive me.” “That time and that Christmas have been a 24. _ on my heart for twenty-five years. I wish your dad
22、 were here so I could tell him how sorry I am for what I said. Your dad was a good man and （85）it hurts me to know that he went to his grave without ever hearing me say that I was sorry for that night. Nothing will ever make what I said right, but you need to know that your dad never did have any mo
23、ney sense (which was all too true). We were fighting all the time though not in front of you we were two months behind in our house payments, we had no money for groceries, your dad was talking about going back to Arkansas and that （90）tree was the last 25. _. I took it all out on you. It doesnt mak
24、e what I did right, but I hoped that someday, when you were older, you would understand. Ive wanted to say something for ever so long and Im so glad its finally out.” Well, we both cried a little and held each other and I forgave her it wasnt hard, you know. Then we talked for a long time, and I did
25、 understand; I saw what I had never seen and the bitterness （95）and sadness that had gathered up in me for all those years gradually 26. _away. It was marvelously simple. The great gifts of this season or any season cant be put under the tree; you cant wear them or eat them or drive them or play wit
26、h them. We spend so much time on the lesser gifts toys, sweaters, jewelry, the mint, anise and dill of Christmas and so little on the great gifts Moral： _ _ _. Forgiveness keys 1.suppose 2.afford 3.mentioned 4.badly 5.catch 6.surprise 7.unplanned 8.hit 9.selection 10.dragged 11.shape 12.bursting 13.indicates 14.dawn 15.turn 16.sense 17.reached 18.reminded 19.divided 20.discovered 21.quiet 22.hesitated 23.bottled 24.burden 25.straw 26.washed
