Well Done

On Wednesday each student must read a short paragraph out loud. Lin Hao's paragraph is about a girl who moved to a modern city. The city is noisy and crowded, and her parents are busy. He practised at home, but now his hands are cold.

星期三，每个同学都要大声读一小段。 林浩的那段讲一个女孩搬进现代化的城市。 城市又吵又挤，她的父母很忙。 他在家练过，可现在手是凉的。

When his name is called, he stands up. His voice shakes a little on the first sentence. He takes a breath, the same way he did after lunch in the first week. Then he finishes the whole paragraph, sentence by sentence.

叫到他的名字，他站起来。 第一句时声音有点抖。 他吸了一口气，像第一周午饭后那样。 然后他一句一句，把整段读完。

"Well done," the teacher says. "You didn't stop." A few students clap, not because it was perfect, but because he tried. Lin Hao sits down. His face is hot, but he feels brave. Out loud is different from reading in your head.

老师说：“读得很好。你没有停下来。” 有几个同学鼓掌，不是因为完美，而是因为他试了。 林浩坐下。脸很烫，可他觉得自己勇敢了一点。 大声读，和在脑子里读，不是一回事。

Zhao Min whispers, "You did it." He writes two words in the margin: Well done. Not as a prize from someone else only, but as a note to himself. Tomorrow he can read a little faster. Today, finishing was enough.

赵敏小声说：“你做到了。” 他在页边写了两个词：Well done。 不只是别人给的奖，也是写给自己的一句。 明天可以读快一点。今天，读完就够了。