If You Give Me Three Days of Light: The Best Collection of Helen Keller

Chapter 47 Anne Sullivan's Letters (4)
I started liking my job more and more, it became more interesting and meaningful.Helen's thirst for knowledge is very strong, she is really an amazing child.In less than three months, she has mastered a large number of idioms and about [-] words.It may be said that it is a very precious privilege to observe a person's birth, development, and futile struggles in the first use of his intellect.This privilege is now my privilege, and I will cherish it, use it to awaken the innate wisdom in a person, and actively guide this wisdom.

If only I can shoulder this sacred mission, then I will move forward without hesitation and carry this mission to the end.But every day I go through adds an extra layer of inadequacy.I have a lot of ideas, but I can't put them into practice.So you see, my thoughts are crowded in various dark corners, rushing left and right, searching up and down, and I am loose and free.And how I wanted to arrange them in order!Oh, it would be great if someone could help me!Just like Helen has me, I also need the guidance of a teacher.

I deeply know that if I have enough brains and perseverance to educate this child, then my life will definitely be different from others.One thing I have now made up my mind is that Helen must learn to use books, and in fact, I need to, we both should learn to use books.Speaking of which, I have something to trouble you with. Please ask Mr. Ananos for me, can you find me the psychological works of Sally and Perez?I think I must be able to find something to help us.

Now we have reading class every day.Usually we will set up a small "reader's seat" under a big tree near the house, and then we will spend an hour or two reviewing the words that Helen has learned before.We'll turn the review process into a game of who can find the word in the shortest time.Of course Helen used her fingers and I used my eyes.When her finger touches a word she knows, she will yell with joy and keep hugging and kissing me.

Especially excited if she thinks she beats me.Just like that, in as little as an hour, and in this pleasant way, she'll learn more vocabulary that will surprise you.Then, I would use the new words to form short sentences and sometimes stories.Not as good as the story of a bee, a kitten, or a little boy.Now, I can make her do many things—up and down stairs, out or in, lock or unlock, carry or deliver, and sit, stand, walk, run, lie down, crawl, roll over, climb climb.She's interested in words about actions, so teaching her verbs won't be a problem.In addition, she is always ready to absorb new things.Once she learns something new, she becomes elated.Whenever she learned a sentence, she was as happy as a general who conquered an enemy fortress.

Helen has a bad habit that is hard to correct, that is, she loves to destroy things.If she found something in the way, she would fling it on the ground without ever asking what it was--whether it was a glass, a kettle, or a lantern.She has many dolls, almost every one of which has been torn and beaten in her rage or boredom.One day a friend from Memphis brought her a new doll.Therefore, I intend to use this opportunity to let Helen understand that it is wrong to destroy things at will.

I made her make the motion of banging the doll's head against the table, and spelled to her, "No, Helen is really naughty, the teacher is very upset." Then I let her touch the sad expression on my face.At the same time, I asked her to hold the doll gently in her arms, and let her caress the doll while kissing the injured part of the doll. I spelled to her: "Helen is very good, the teacher is very happy." She touches the smile on my face.She did these actions several times in succession, and imitated each step.

At first, she stood for a moment with a puzzled look on her face.But after a while, it dawned on her, and she spelled "Helen is nice" to me with a big smile on purpose.She then ran downstairs and put the doll on the top shelf of the wardrobe, and she never touched the doll again.

Do send my regards to Mr. Ananos, and show him my letter if you think it necessary.Also, I heard about a blind and deaf kid who was attending Baltimore College...

letter fourteen
Nov. 1887, 6

The weather has become very hot these days and we are eagerly hoping for a little rain.Everyone was worried about Helen.Nervous, restless is her recent performance.Even at night she was restless and had no appetite.None of us know what to do.The doctor says her mind is overactive, but how can we stop her from thinking?As soon as she wakes up every morning, she begins to spell words, and it continues throughout the day.If I don't talk to her, she writes on her hand.Clearly, she was lost in the state of talking to herself, and I was really overwhelmed by her.

I wanted her mind to rest, so I gave her my Braille tablet to play with. I thought that this device that can poke holes in the paper would interest her, but to my surprise, this The little witch actually wrote a letter on it!I don't know how she knew about writing the letter.She often went to the post office with me to post letters, I think, maybe because I often relayed the contents of the letters to her.Of course, she also knew that I sometimes wrote letters to blind little girls on the clipboard, but I didn't believe she really understood what it was like to write letters.One day she handed me a page full of holes (Braille) and she wanted to put it in an envelope and take it to the post office.She said to me: "Frank" "letter".So I asked her what she had written to Frank, and she replied, "Many words, mother puppy, five. Baby, cry. Hot, Helen walks. No, the sun is on fire, bad. Come on, Frank. Helen, kiss Frank. Strawberries, delicious."

Now Helen's desire to read was as strong as her desire to speak.I found that she already judges the meaning of the words she doesn't understand according to the context, that is to say, she knows how to grasp the key point of the whole sentence.Her thirst for knowledge shows that external circumstances have had an unusual effect on her psyche.

One night, when I went to bed, I found Helen falling asleep with a huge book in her arms.Obviously, she fell asleep while reading.Early the next morning, I asked her what she had read, and while trembling, she gestured in fear, and replied, "Books. Crying."So I taught her to spell the word "scared", but she said, "Helen is not afraid, books are afraid, books sleep with girls." I told her that books are not afraid, but books need to sleep on shelves, and girls cannot Read in bed.She looks very naughty.Apparently, she knew I had gotten her point.

I thank Mr. Ananos for having such a high opinion of me.But the use of words like 'genius' and 'groundbreaking' in his compliments about me strikes me with awe.I don't think I'm worthy of such praise, these compliments have nothing to do with me

Next I want to tell you something individually.I have been thinking about it these days, and I think that we must go beyond what Dr. Hao has achieved in terms of the importance and impact of educating Helen.I firmly believe that I will realize my dream.I don't care about the difficulty of the task, or even the idea that it is considered absurd.Because I know very well that Helen has outstanding abilities, and I am also capable enough to develop and shape her own potential.I can't tell you how I came to this idea, and I have no idea how to proceed.I'm just groping my way in the dark, but anyway, I know what I'm doing and I know what it means to do it.I can't explain it, but I no longer feel helpless or overwhelmed when difficulties arise.It might sound miraculous that I seemed to be able to anticipate Helen's special needs, and I knew how to deal with them, but it was.

Everyone liked Helen more and more. It can be said that everyone who saw her left a deep impression on her.She was no ordinary child, and the interest in her education would not be "ordinary interest."Therefore, it is not an exaggeration to describe her in any detail.In short, I will tell you everything as it is.But I have one condition, you must agree to me, that is, don't show my letter to anyone else.Helen's education should be done in a down-to-earth manner, step by step. We cannot achieve astonishing results in a short period of time as expected by others.

letter fifteen
Nov. 1887, 6

Helen became listless due to the scorching heat.It's not just her, the steamy weather makes us all basically half-boil.Yesterday, Helen sat naked all afternoon.When the sun shone through the window, she was sitting by the window reading a book.So she immediately got up and closed the window.But the sun is still there.She ran to me with a sad face and spelled to me with emphatic gestures: "Sun should go to bed, Sun is a bad boy."

Now she is very cute, she has become a clever little girl, one day, I want her to get a glass of water, you can't guess what she said to her, she said: "Legs are very tired, legs cry Very powerful."

She was very interested in some chicks that were hatching this morning.I asked her to hold an egg in her hand so that she could feel the chirping of the chicks as they pecked at the shell.When she found a small animal hidden in the eggshell, she was so surprised that she couldn't spell a word.The hatching hen was very docile, and she didn't object to our exploration, so Helen and I explored it carefully.

In addition to the new chicks, we've also added several new additions—two calves, a foal, and some adorable little black pigs.If you saw me holding a squeaky piglet in my arms, you would laugh at me.Helen touched the piggy up and down, and she asked me countless questions, and every question she asked was not so easy to deal with.For example, after watching the chick breaking out of its shell, she would ask: "Do baby pigs also grow in eggshells? How big are the eggshells, and where are those eggshells?"
Helen's head measures 21 inches and mine is [-] inches.You see, my head is only an inch bigger than Helen's, so maybe I'm smarter than her.

letter sixteen
Nov. 1887, 6

It's still hot these days.Helen was still pale and thin, unchanged.But don't think she's sick.I believe that the heat of the day, and not her beautiful and active mind, is responsible for her present state of body.Of course, I'm not going to overburden her brain.We are troubled right now by people who think they have a mission to things that God has overlooked.They told me that Helen's mind was "overworked" by being too active, but these were the very same people who, just a few months ago, thought Helen had no brains at all, and who came up with a lot of ridiculous and unrealistic ideas.But fortunately, no one seems to have thought of using chloroform to anesthetize Helen so far. I think this is the only effective way to prevent her from training her mind.It's odd that there are always some people who give advice that is baseless, that is, they don't care how many times experience proves them wrong.They always seem to have God-given privileges, expressing their opinions endlessly!
Right now I'm teaching Helen's cube sign language alphabet, which I use as a learning respite.Not only does this keep her occupied, but it also keeps her calm.This, I think, is the best course of action in dreary weather.In addition, she has become obsessed with counting, she will count everything in the house, and now, she is working hard to count the words in the literacy textbook.Hope she doesn't start counting her own hair one day.I think if she could see and hear, her senses would help her to dissipate this excess energy, and her brain would not be so burdened.But on the other hand, I think ordinary children don't take their games so seriously.The children will "drive" the "New York Flying Man" in circles in the kindergarten. They don't care about the driving route, but just focus on their toy trains and become unimaginative "train drivers".

Helen said to me just now with a worried face, "Girl. I can't count many words." I said to her, "It's okay, baby, don't count, go and play with Nancy." However, this suggestion did not let her Happy.She replied, "No, Nancy is sick." I asked her what was wrong with her, and she said, "Nancy is sick with a lot of teeth." Mildred was teething at the time, and she was lovely.

One day I told her that the vine entwining the fence was a "reptile," and she was so intrigued by the "reptile" that she immediately compared her movements with those of the plants.I said, they can run, they can crawl, they can jump, they can jump, they can bend, they can land, they can climb, they can swing.So, she slyly said to me that she is a "walking plant".

Helen tried to annoy me on purpose last night.As soon as I wound the clock, she began spelling out, "Wind fast, slow," and then turned it in a circle, obviously taking pride in her little trick.

letter seventeen
Nov. 1887, 6

We had a torrential downpour last night, and it feels particularly cool today.Everyone's spirits were lifted, as if they had taken a good bath.Helen also became alive and kicking.She asked me this morning if the trees and flowers drink up all the rainwater.And when she felt the thunder, was someone shooting into the sky,

letter eighteen
Nov. 1887, 6

It can be said that my "little apprentice" satisfies her thirst for knowledge every waking moment, and she always maintains a high enthusiasm as always.But her constant mental work makes us worry about her health.However, after weeks of sluggishness, her appetite has returned and her sleep has become more restful and natural.She will be seven years old on the 27th of this month.Now she was four feet one and her head was twenty-one-half inches.Also, the head circumference is measured at the lower edge of the parietal and frontal bones, above which the head circumference will add an inch and a quarter.

Even when we were walking, she spelled non-stop, and when she couldn't get the stitches right, she would say, "Helen was wrong. The teacher would cry." If she wanted a glass of water, she would say : "Give Helen water to drink." Moreover, she will make corresponding actions excitedly, such as jumping, hopping on one leg, running, walking fast, walking slowly and so on.She already knew four hundred words, and many proper nouns.Here are the words I taught Helen in a class: bedstead (bed frame), mattress (mattress), sheet (sheet), blanket (blanket), comforter (quilt), spread (quilt cover), pillow (pillow).The next day, I found that she memorized all the words except spread (quilt cover).Still on that day, she also learned the following words: house (house), weed (weed), dust (dust), swing (swing), molasses (syrup), fast (fast), slow (slow), maple·sugar (maple sugar) and counter (counter).She has not forgotten any of these words.This gave me a deeper understanding of her excellent memory.In addition, she can write the seven block Braille letters and can form words with these letters.She can also count quickly from one to thirty.

She seemed to understand now what it was to write a letter, and could not wait to write to Frank.She loves punching holes in paper with the drill awl.At first I thought she was trying to test her "study results", but after a day of observation, I was surprised to find that she was imagining writing a letter.She spelled out "Eva," the name of a favorite cousin, with one hand, and pretended to write it on paper.Then spelled "sick in bed" and then pretended to write on paper.The process of writing letters like this was repeated for almost an hour.She never tires of imagining writing on paper.When she had finished writing the letter, she showed the paper to her mother, and spelled, "Frank's letter." Then she asked her brother to take the letter to the post office.She is very familiar with the post office, because since I came to her house, she has accompanied me to the post office to deliver letters.

Helen can immediately recognize people she has met before, not only that, but she can also spell people's names, which is amazing.Unlike Laura Bridgman, she preferred the company of gentlemen.We all noticed that she was able to make friends with a gentleman in a very short time.In fact, such a situation rarely happens to a woman.

(End of this chapter)