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

Chapter 48 Anne Sullivan's Letters (5)
She always bears the gossip and gossip that people say silently, and rarely lets gossip affect her emotions.She loves fine clothes and can look down when she finds a hole in her dress.When she was so sleepy that she almost used a toothpick to prop her eyes, she still insisted on curling her hair before going to sleep.One morning she found a small hole in her boot, so, just after breakfast, she ran to her father and spelled, "Helen's new boot. Simpson's (her brother) bug hid Go in." Hehe, you should understand what she means.

letter nineteen
Nov. 1887, 7

One thing happened this morning, which I wish never to happen again, when I heard a commotion downstairs.There was Helen screaming loudly, so I hurried downstairs to find out.I found her extremely angry.She has been so submissive for the past two months, I thought Love had tamed "this little lion".But now it seems that "this lion" just seems to be sleeping, and at this moment "this lion" wakes up, and she keeps scratching, biting and tearing Winnie, just like a little beast.

It turned out that Helen was filling a glass with rocks, and Winnie was worried that Helen would break the glass, so she wanted to take the glass away, but Helen insisted on not letting her take it, so Winnie snatched it hard.I guess she hit Helen with the palm of her hand, or did something to make Helen lose her temper.

I took Helen's hand and felt her trembling with anger, and she began to cry.I asked her what happened, and she spelled to me, "Vinnie. Bad." Then she kicked Vinnie in a rage.I held her tightly until she calmed down.

Later, Helen came to my room with a guilty look on her face and wanted to lean over to kiss me.She knew that this made me very unhappy, so she wanted to come to me, but I think it is better to let her reflect alone.So I said to her, "I don't kiss naughty girls." She spelled, "Helen is good, Vinnie is bad." Kick and bite, I don't kiss naughty girls."

She stood still for a while.Her expression was confused and flushed, and I could see that she was engaged in a fierce ideological struggle.Then she said: "Helen doesn't love her teacher, Helen Keller loves her mother, and her mother will whip Winnie." I told her that it's best for her not to talk about it anymore, but to reflect on herself.

At the dinner table, she was actually terrified because she found out that I hadn't eaten.So, she suggested "make a cup of tea for the teacher quickly".I told her that I was so sad that I couldn't eat anything.As a result, she whimpered and cried, still clinging to me tightly.

As we went upstairs, I recovered, and she saw it, and looked very pleased.I tried to get her attention with a fancy insect called a "stick bug".The worm was the strangest thing I ever saw--its body was like a little bundle of sticks.If I didn't see it moving, I thought it was dead.This little bug looks more like a mechanical toy than a creature of nature.But this cute little girl couldn't concentrate at all.Her heart was full of anxiety.

She asked me, "Does Xiaochong know about naughty girls? Is Xiaochong very happy?" Then she put her arms around my neck and said, "I will be good tomorrow, and Helen will be good every day from now on. ’ I said, ‘So would you say to Vinnie that you’re sorry for scratching and kicking her? ’ She smiled and replied, ‘Vinnie can’t spell words. Come with me to find Vinnie, and I'll tell her your apology?" As a result, she was happy to meet Vinnie, and let him kiss her.

Since this incident, she has shown rare love.It seemed to me a welcome phenomenon, and in her I found a caring for others that I hadn't seen before.

letter twenty
Nov. 1887, 7

Helen's pencil handwriting is so good that you'll see her handwriting in the cover letter, we might even call it "calligraphy", which is a work of her own amusement.I'm teaching her the Braille alphabet, and she's excited to make sentences out of the letters of the alphabet that she can touch.

Now, she has developed to the stage of non-stop questioning.For example: "Why?" "When?"Apparently, as her intelligence developed, so did her thirst for knowledge.What I remember most is my friend's child, who was at this stage and his curiosity was simply overwhelming.

Helen would ask me "How did a carpenter know how to build a house?" "Who put the chicken in the egg?" "Why was Vinnie black?" Bite?" "Why did Dad kill the sheep?" Of course, many of the questions she asked weren't all that clever.Her thinking is no more logical than that of ordinary children.But I know that these questions just show that the child is becoming interested in the cause of things.This "why" is like a door through which you can enter the world of reason and thought.In general, the questions she asked were similar to those asked by a bright three-year-old.However, her thirst for knowledge seems to be stronger.Those questions will never make you feel boring, but you will feel that the book will be used up when you use it, and I have to use my knowledge reserves to the limit.

I received a letter from Laura Bridgman last Sunday.Please give her my regards and tell her that Helen is giving her a kiss.As I read the letter at the dinner table, Mrs. Keller exclaimed: "Really, Miss Anne? Helen will write such a letter in the future?" It is indeed true, we will wait quietly.

letter 21
Nov. 1887, 8

We had a great time in Huntsville.Helen was overwhelmed with gifts and passionate kisses, everyone here loved Helen.The first night we got here, she knew the names of all the guests in the hotel, you know, there were about 20 people.The next morning, we were amazed to find that she not only remembered everyone's name, but also recognized everyone she had met the night before.A girl taught her to dance the polka, and a little boy let Helen visit the rabbits he raised, and spelled the names of these rabbits to Helen. She was very happy and expressed her love by hugging and kissing. Happy, but the little boy looked very embarrassed.Helen taught the younger guests the sign language alphabet, and several had learned to converse with her.

We took a picture of Helen with a fluffy red-eyed poodle.The puppy seemed to have a natural knack for people-pleasing, and it matched perfectly with the graceful gestures Helen could strike.

Since returning home, Helen has given a continuous account of what she has seen and heard in Huntsville, and we have all noticed a marked improvement in her verbal skills.Apart from the beautiful poodle, what impressed her most was our drive to the summit of Monty Sano.

"Monty Sano" is a beautiful mountain not far from Huntsville.She still remembers all the sights I have told her about, and can repeat to her mother verbatim the words and phrases I have used.Finally, she asked her mother if she also enjoyed looking at "the towering mountains and the beautiful sea of ​​clouds".In fact, I have not used this expression before.I just said to her, "The clouds touch the mountains softly, they are like beautiful flowers." You know, I had to use my imagination and the "tactile language" she was familiar with when describing the scene.But for a person who has never seen a mountain, it seems difficult for you to convey the concept of "magnificence" to her in words.I don't know what to say to her to make her happy, or how other people learn how she feels, I just know that I will try to give her a good imagination and a good memory.

letter 22

Nov. 1887, 8

I wish the world would stop this birth of species soon! "New dog", "new calf" and "new baby" simply pushed Helen's curiosity to a fever pitch.Whenever "Ivy Green" ushered in a new life, she would ask a series of questions about the birth of the baby and the origin of the creature. "How did the doctor know where to find the baby? Where did the doctor find Guy and Prince? Where did Lila's new baby come from? Did Lila tell the doctor to think Want a new baby that's really small? How did Elizabeth Evelyn get a sister?" You know, on some occasions, these are really difficult questions to answer.

However, since Helen's questions are normal and natural, it is my duty to answer them.So I made up my mind to properly solve this kind of problem.With the improvement of observation and discrimination, children naturally have a strong thirst for knowledge, and I think it is very wrong to prevaricate them with lies and fallacies.So from the beginning, I kept a natural and sincere attitude and tried my best to answer these questions in a language that Helen could understand.

In fact, we can ask ourselves: "Why do we often avoid answering these questions, or respond indiscriminately?" In fact, there is no special reason at all, just because we are ignorant of the huge fact of the existence of the body.But there can be no doubt that it was through ignorance that I ventured into territory even experienced teachers dared not tread.I can't turn to anyone in the world for help on this kind of problem, because it's also a common educational problem.The only thing I can do is to move forward in confusion, making mistakes and making progress.

Of course it's worth emphasizing that I don't think I made a mistake in this matter.Because I have started to teach Helen about botany, "how plants grow" is what we often read and study.In the simplest terms, I would tell her stories about growing plants that reminded her of the corn, beans, and watermelon seeds she planted in the spring.I told her that the tall corn, and also the bean and watermelon vines develop from these seeds.I also explained to her how the soil keeps the seeds warm and moist, how the seeds take root and germinate, and how they absorb sunlight and air.When they flower and bear fruit, they produce more seeds, which then become "baby plants" again.

I also told her that seeds and eggs are like hens and birds lay eggs - the mother hen has to keep her eggs warm and dry before the chicks can hatch.I made an analogy between plants and animals in this way to let Helen understand that all life comes from an egg.

The mother fish lays her eggs in a moist and safe place, and she will wait until the moment the baby fish are born.The mother bird lays the eggs in the nest, and she keeps the eggs warm until the chicks hatch.I said to Helen that you could call the egg (egg) "the cradle of life."Then I told her that humans and animals like dogs and cows don't lay eggs, they conceive offspring in their own bodies.

The process of explaining is a bit difficult, but there is one link that I can explain to her without any difficulty, that is, if animals and plants cannot reproduce, they will not survive anymore, and the living things in the world will die out soon .But about the "function of sex", it gave me a little headache, I used the way of explaining it in passing.However, I tried to make her understand that "love" is the fundamental guarantee for the continuation of life.

Although this topic is very difficult, my knowledge is also very lacking.But I didn't shirk my responsibility, which is my own comfort.I think that even my hesitant and incomplete explanation will definitely resonate deeply in the heart of my "little apprentice".She wanted to understand the course of a great life, and she seemed to be ready, which convinced me even more that there is some kind of natural force dormant in the heart of a child, and when he or she comes into this world, all Your innate experience will gradually reveal itself.These experiences are like the negatives of photos. When their language ability develops to a certain level, they will express these experiences, just like listening to images will be presented on the negatives.

letter 23

Nov. 1887, 9

This morning, Helen received a letter from her uncle, Dr. Keller.In the letter, Mr. Keller invited her to visit the town of "Hot Spring".As always, the new term "hot spring" intrigued her, and she asked a lot of questions.She knew of common cold springs before, for there were several near Tuscumbia.In fact, "Tuscumbia" means "big spring" in Indian, and the name of the town comes from the largest fountain.

Now she marveled at the fact that the hot springs came out of the ground.She wondered if someone had started a fire in the ground, like a fire in a stove, and if it would have burned roots and earthworms.The letter made her so happy that, having asked all the questions she cared about, she took it to Mrs. Keller, whose mother was sewing in the hall.She held the letter in one hand and spelled out sentences for her mom with the other, just as I read it to her.

The next scene is very funny: Helen tries to read the letter to Bella (a dog) and Mildred.At that time, Mrs. Keller and I were standing by the door, watching this "comedy for children" with a smile.Bella appeared drowsy, and Mildred looked around absently.On the other hand, Helen had a serious face. Once or twice, when Mildred wanted to grab the letter, Helen blocked her sister's hand impatiently.At last Bella got up and shook herself, and as she tried to go away, Helen grabbed her by the neck and forced the poor dog to lie down again.When the dog and man were in a stalemate, Mildred had already caught the letter, and she wanted to take the letter and leave quietly.Helen squatted on the ground and fumbled, but couldn't find the letter.She immediately thought that her sister had taken the letter, because she made a soft voice calling for her sister.Then she stood up and listened, catching Mildred's thump, thump.Finally, she locked the location of the voice, and quickly rushed to the "little suspect", but she found that the "hateful little suspect" was biting the precious letter!
No need to think about how important this letter is to Helen.She grabbed the letter and slapped her sister's little hand severely.Mrs. Keller immediately walked over and took Mildred into her arms to calm her down.I asked Helen, "Why are you doing this to your sister?" She seemed a little confused, hesitated for a moment, and then replied, "A girl who does bad things eats her, and Helen calls a girl who does bad things." I told her that Mildred didn't understand It was wrong to put the letter in her mouth because she was young.

"I told my sister, no, you can't do it many times." Helen replied immediately.

I said to her, "We must be very gentle with her, for Mildred still cannot understand what you say with your fingers."

Helen shook her head.

"Sister, I can't think. Helen will give my sister a beautiful letter." After she finished speaking, she ran upstairs, and when she came down, she brought a piece of neatly folded Braille paper.She had already written a few words on it, and she said, "Sister can eat them," and showed the paper to Mildred.

letter 24

Nov. 1887, 9

I'm going to tell you some news, I don't know if you will be surprised to hear it.That is, I was about to write something for the newspaper. I didn't know how it happened. I just said "no" repeatedly, and Captain Keller urged me to write.Mr. Ananos has always advocated that I introduce my teaching experience to others, thinking that Helen's miraculous performance may benefit other disabled children.Captain Keller agreed with him and said it was my duty to do so.

In fact, it is easy to describe Helen as a wonderful child, because she lives up to her name, she has a real "language learning impulse", and she shows a rich ability in the choice of words and sentences, and expresses emotions.I kept a record of everything she said during the last week.I found out that she already knew six hundred words.However, there is more to it than that, and she always gets the words right.Sometimes, the sentences she made were like puzzles.But these puzzle-like sentences are just the necessary means by which children try to express their unformed thoughts, although such language is often arbitrary and willful.

(End of this chapter)