#short_story THE BOY AND HIS SLED Mike was the smallest ch | Multi English

#short_story

THE BOY AND HIS SLED

Mike was the smallest child in school. Another boy, Joe, always teased Mike. Joe had a large scar on his face from fighting other children. One day, Joe offended Mike when he made fun of Mike’s valentine , Jane. Mike felt disgrace , but he didn’t know how to make Joe stop.

That day, Mike walked home down an alley. He found a bunch of wood boards next to a pine tree. He thought to himself , “ I could build a decent sled from this. If I let Joe use it, he will be nicer to me and Jane.” He took the wood home.

Mike got an ax and cut the wood . He used nails to make sure that the pieces were not loose. As he worked, he bumped his elbow on the boards. The painful sensation made him want to cry. It was a hard chore, but he persisted. He worked overnight . By morning, the sled was finished.

Mike called Joe on the telephone. He said, “ Hi Joe. Come over to my house right away.” Joe didn’t know why Mike wanted him to come over. When Joe arrived, Mike told him, “Joe, it irritated me the other day when you said mean things about my card to Jane. You weren’t kidding when you said those mean things. But I’m not like you. I just built this sled, and I’ll let you ride it with me if you are nice.”

They became friends and Joe was grateful that Mike was so nice to him. He learned that it is more fun to be nice than to be mean.

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alley [ˈælɪ] narrow road behind houses or buildings
ax [ӕks] a tool used to cut wood.
bunch [bʌntʃ] group of the same things.
chore [tʃɔːr] a job that you have to do but don’t like
decent [ˈdiːsənt] OK or good enough.
disgrace [dɪsˈgreɪs] feeling of shame
grateful [ˈgreɪtfəl] happy that smth happened.
irritate [ˈɪrəteɪt] to annoy someone.
kid [kid] to make a joke
loose [luːs] is not held in place well.
offend [əˈfend] to make them angry.
overnight [ouvərnait] during the night.
persist [pə:rsɪst] to keep doing smth even when it is hard.
sled [sled] a small vehicle used on snow
tease [tiːz] to laugh at or make fun
valentine [ˈvæləntaɪn] smb you love or admire


@multi_english