As a young man, Al was a famous artist with his wife and two fine sons. One night, his elder son had a bad stomachache. Thinking it was only some1trouble, neither Al and his wife took the condition very seriously. But the boy died suddenly that night.
Knowing the child could have been2if he had only realized the seriousness of the situation, he always felt he was guilty (负罪感). To make matters worse, his wife 3him a short time later, leaving him alone with his six-year-old younger son. The hurt and 4of the two situations were more than Al could stand, and he was used to drinking alcohol (酒精) for 5. In time Al became an alcoholic.
Drinking too much alcohol, Al began to lose 6he owned—his land, house, money, etc. Finally Al died alone in a small bar. Hearing of Al's7, I thought, “What a wasted life! What a complete failure!”
As time went by, I knew Al's now adult son, Ernie. He is one of the8, most caring, most loving men I have ever known. I saw the9between Ernie and his children, thinking that kindness and caring had to come from somewhere.
I hadn't heard Ernie talk much about his father. One day, I tried to ask him what his father had done so that he became such a special person. Ernie said quietly, “ As a 10until I left home at eighteen, my father came into my room every night, gave me a kiss and said, ‘Love you, son.'”
