k…eater ants。”
They returned the nod； as if they； too； had been bitten by sock…eating ants。
“Let me see here。” She freed my heel from the shoe。 “Just what I thought。 Those sock ants have eaten part of her sock。”
Miss Bell opened the medicine cabinet； got a cotton ball； and saturated it with alcohol。 Miss Womble slipped off my shoe and sock and shook both of them over the gray trash bucket。 Two red ants fell into the waiting container。 A stray one ran for the wall； but Mr。 Stewart’s shoe stopped him。
My swollen foot throbbed5。 My stomach hurt。 My head ached。
Stroking the alcohol ball across the angry bites； Miss Womble lifted her head and smiled at me。 “I think she’s going to be okay now；” she said； as she glanced toward the two adults。
The bell rang； ending the recess period。 “It’s class time。” Mr。 Stewart remarked； as he and Miss Belt hurried to their duties。
The alcohol felt cool on the savage welts。
“You were a pretty brave girl to take that many bites。 I think you should leave this shoe and sock off for a while。” She helped me off the desk。“Wait for me after school； and we’ll walk home together。”
Pride can be a wonderful； terrible thing。 I knew that Miss Womble had saved my pride with her sock…eating ant story。 She had seen that I would rather be stung to death than to let others see my poverty。 This kind； insightful teacher had taught me a lesson of passion that I have tried to apply in my thirty…seven years of teaching。
無聲的愛
佚名
他們相愛在明媚的春日。她曾將苦澀潔白的櫻花撒滿櫻樹枝頭，一片悽美的花瓣飄落，不經意間，裝進了愛意濃濃的信封，對此他一無所知。長長的路途沒有盡頭，花瓣已經漸漸退色，只留下一股春天的芬芳。笑容溢滿他的臉龐，像一個人陷入溫柔的回憶裡。他不知她曾經來過。
第二年夏天，因為濃濃的思念，她更靠近他了，他沒有察覺。她把自己深藏在一隻貝殼裡．只將愛的召喚傳遞給他。在那隻貝殼滾落到他的腳下之前，已被她握在手中好久，上面還有她的溫度。猶豫的腳步在沙灘上留下憂鬱的足跡，他在含著珍珠的貝殼