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1. The Pickle Jar

As far back as I can remember, the large pickle jar sat on the floor beside the dresser in my parents' bedroom. When he got ready for bed, Dad would empty his pockets and toss his coins into the jar. As a small boy I was always fascinated at the sounds the coins made as they were dropped into the jar. They landed with a merry jingle when the jar was almost empty. Then the tones gradually muted to a dull thud as the jar was filled. I used to squat on the floor in front of the jar and admire the copper and silver circles that glinted like a pirate's treasure when the sun poured through the bedroom window.

When the jar was filled, Dad would sit at the kitchen table and roll the coins before taking them to the bank. Taking the coins to the bank was always a big production. Stacked neatly in a small cardboard box, the coins were placed between Dad and me on the seat of his old truck. Each and every time, as we drove to the bank, Dad would look at me hopefully. \mill, son. You're going to do better than me. This old mill town's not going to hold you back.\each and every time, as he slid the box of rolled coins across the counter at the bank toward the cashier, he would grin proudly. \college fund. He'll never work at the mill all his life like me.\

We would always celebrate each deposit by stopping for an ice cream cone. I always got chocolate. Dad always got vanilla. When the clerk at the ice cream parlor handed Dad his change, he would show me the few coins nestled in his palm. \we get home, we'll start filling the jar again.\

He always let me drop the first coins into the empty jar. As they rattled around with a brief, happy jingle, we grinned at each other. \nickels, dimes and quarters,\

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The years passed, and I finished college and took a job in another town. Once, while visiting my parents, I used the phone in their bedroom, and noticed that the pickle jar was gone. It had served its purpose and had been removed. A lump rose in my throat as I stared at the spot beside the dresser where the jar had always stood. My dad was a man of few words, and never lectured me on the values of determination, perseverance, and faith. The pickle jar had taught me all these virtues far more eloquently than the most flowery of words could have done.

When I married, I told my wife Susan about the significant part the lowly pickle jar had played in my life as a boy. In my mind, it defined, more than anything else, how much my dad had loved me. No matter how rough things got at home, Dad continued to doggedly drop his coins into the jar. Even the summer when Dad got laid off from the mill, and Mama had to serve dried beans several times a week, not a single dime was taken from the jar. To the contrary, as Dad looked across the table at me, pouring catsup over my beans to make them more palatable, he became more determined than ever to make a way out for me. \told me, his eyes glistening, \to.\my parents. After dinner, Mom and Dad sat next to each other on the sofa, taking turns cuddling their first grandchild. Jessica began to whimper softly, and Susan took her from Dad's arms. \into my parents' bedroom to diaper her.

When Susan came back into the living room, there was a strange mist in her eyes. She handed Jessica back to Dad before taking my hand and quietly leading me into the room.

\dresser. To my amazement, there, as if it had never been removed, stood the old pickle jar, the bottom already covered with coins.

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I walked over to the pickle jar, dug down into my pocket, and pulled out a fistful of coins. With a gamut of emotions choking me, I dropped the coins into the jar. I looked up and saw that Dad, carrying Jessica, had slipped quietly into the room. Our eyes locked, and I knew he was feeling the same emotions I felt. Neither one of us could speak.

Exercises

1. Read the following statements and decide whether they are true (T) or false (F) according to the text.

1. The sounds which the coins made as they were dropped into the pickle jar greatly interested the narrator. ( )

2. Before taking them to the bank, the father would ask his son to count the coins. ( )

3. The Father was a bit ashamed each time he slid the box of rolled coins across the counter at the bank. ( )

4. After each deposit, the narrator would ask his father to buy him a vanilla ice cream cone. ( )

5. After graduation from college, the narrator worked in another town. ( )

6. The narrator felt that he had learned the values of determination, perseverance and faith from the pickle jar. ( )

7. From what his father did, the narrator could feel his great love for him. ( )

8. The narrator and his wife spent the first Christmas after their marriage with his parents. ( )

9. Puzzled by what she saw, the narrator’s wife led him into his parents’ bedroom. ( )

10. The narrator dropped a fistful of coins into the jar in return for his father’s love for him. ( )

2. Choose the best answer to each of the following questions based on the information of the text.

1. When the narrator was young, ___________.

A) he used to toss all the coins he had into a pickle jar

B) he used to like making sounds by dropping coins into a pickle jar C) his father used to save all the coins he had D) his father used to give him all the coins he had

2. By depositing the coins in the bank, the father was determined that ______. A) he would teach his son the virtue of thrift

B) he would leave as much money as possible to his son

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C) his family would be better off in the future

D) his son would go to college and live a better life

3. The narrator felt ______ as he stared at the place where the jar had always stood. A) strange B) puzzled C) moved

D) embarrassed

4. It can be inferred from the passage that when the narrator was young, _____. A) his family was very poor

B) his father was more determined than his mother C) his mother liked to serve dried beans for the family D) he did very well in his studies

5. The narrator was amazed and moved to find that ________. A) the old pickle jar had never been removed B) his father had never stopped depositing money C) the old pickle jar was filled with coins

D) his father had started to save money for his baby daughter

咸菜坛子

在我的记忆中，那个大泡菜坛子就放在父母卧室梳妆台旁边的地板上。当他准备睡觉时，爸爸就会掏空他的口袋，把硬币扔进罐子里。当我还是个小男孩的时候，我总是着迷于硬币掉进罐子里时发出的声音。当罐子几乎空了的时候，他们高兴地叮当一声落在地上。然后，声音逐渐减弱为沉闷的砰的一声，罐子被装满了。我过去常常蹲在坛子前的地板上，欣赏着当太阳从卧室窗户倾泻进来时，像海盗的宝藏一样闪闪发光的铜圈和银圈。

当罐子装满后，爸爸会坐在餐桌前，把硬币滚到银行。把硬币存入银行一直是一项大工程。硬币整整齐齐地堆在一个小纸板箱里，放在爸爸和我之间的旧卡车座位上。每次，当我们开车去银行的时候，爸爸都会满怀希望地看着我。“孩子，那些硬币可以让你远离纺织厂。你会比我做得更好。这个老磨坊镇不会拖你后腿的。”而且，每一次，当他把装着硬币的盒子从银行柜台上滑到出纳员面前时，他都会骄傲地咧着嘴笑。“这些是为我儿子的大学基金准备的。他一辈子也不会像我这样在厂里干活的。”

每次存款，我们都会停下来买个冰淇淋蛋卷来庆祝。我总是吃巧克力。爸爸总是买香草的。当冰淇淋店的店员把找给爸爸的零钱递给我时，他会把放在他手掌里的几枚硬币拿给我看。“当我们回到家，我们会重新开始填满罐子。”

他总是让我把第一个硬币投到空罐子里。当他们发出短暂而快乐的叮当声时，我们对彼此咧嘴一笑。他说:“你上大学只需要几便士、五分镍币、一角硬币和25美分的硬币。”“但是你会成功的。我会注意的。”

几年过去了，我大学毕业后在另一个城镇找了一份工作。有一次，我去父母家，在他们的卧室里打电话，发现咸菜坛子不见了。它达到了目的，被移走了。

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