“另類”教育法

A truck driver was enjoying his meal at a local diner[餐車飯店] and happened to look towards the door when it opened. That was probably the only reason he ever paid attention to the old lady who came in. She was quite ordinary looking， a little bent， wisps[小束] of white hair had escaped from under her hat. She had good clean clothes， a bit old-fashioned[過時的] perhaps， but that was sort of expected from an old lady.

He bit into his hamburger and expected the lady to disappear into one of the booths[飯館中的小隔間] quietly. But not this old lady.

There was the sound of running steps and the owner and all the servers hurried from behind the counter to meet the old lady.

“Mrs. Cosby!” They shouted， “How pleased we are to see you!”

The old lady smiled and greeted them all.

“Susan， Bob， Alyssa， Carmen… Good to see you all. How have you been? Life has been good to you?”

“Very good， indeed， Mrs. Cosby!” Bob， the owner said， “Now， let me take your coat.”

Very carefully he took the old lady’s coat. The truck driver watched with interest. He had never seen a diner owner help anyone out of their coats before. And he had been driving across the country for quite a few years to say the least[退一步說].

“I’ll bring you a little soup first. Then you can decide what you want to eat this time，” Alyssa smiled and returned to the kitchen.

“But first I shall tidy up your table!” Susan said.

This she did—she wiped the table clean and out of nowhere appeared a bright white， clean table cloth. Carmen seemed to pull a vase with a yellow rose from her pocket.

“Now you sit down and make yourself comfortable， Mrs. Cosby!” Bob helped her to sit down， “There…now， what would you like to drink? Water with a touch of [一點兒] lemon?”

When Bob passed his table， the truck driver could not resist[忍得住].

“Excuse me…”

“Yes? Would you like more coffee?” Bob asked.

“No， thank you， maybe later. I was just wondering…what is so special about the old lady over there?”

“Teacher attitude，” Bob smiled.

“Teacher attitude?” The truck driver did not believe his ears.

“I’ll explain soon if you wait，” Bob said.

And out of sheer[純粹的] curiosity[好奇心] the truck driver waited， watching in awe[敬畏] how the servers did everything in their power to make the old lady really enjoy her meal. And when she was finished， Bob refused to take any payment from her. He escorted[護送] her to the door and stood there， waving as long as it took for her to reach the corner and turn out of sight.

Then he turned， saw the truck driver and walked to him.

“Now， a story about teacher attitude and the importance of motivation[動力]，” he said and sat down.

“Was this Mrs. Cosby your teacher then?”

“Yes， the best one. Though we probably did not make it very easy for her at first… You know how every school seems to have a class that everyone thinks will never graduate? Troublemakers， that’s what we were.”

Bob smiled.

“None of our teachers stayed for long. And so， one morning， the door to the classroom opened and a new teacher walked in， yet again. Mrs. Cosby. We looked at her and gave her maybe a week. She looked too soft to ever handle[對付] us. And we sure gave her a hard time. But she never lost her temper， no matter what we did. And then came the last day of the first month she had been our teacher. That was the day she showed the teacher attitude she became so famous for.”

“Her teacher attitude? What was so special about her teacher attitude?”

“She opened her briefcase[公文包] and took out a bunch of papers. We feared the worst—a test. But oh no， it was something that totally surprised us.”

“Well what was it?” The truck driver asked.

“Mrs. Cosby asked each one of us to come to the front of the class， one by one， and gave us each a paper. On each paper she had written what the student in question had been good at during the last month.”

The truck driver looked at Bob， “She showed her teacher attitude by giving you a paper that told you what you were good at? I’m sorry， I don’t get it.”

“If you think about it， you’ll get it alright. You see， no one had ever believed in us. No one ever liked us. We were constantly[經常地] told how good-for-nothing[毫無價值的] we were. And we had started to believe it ourselves. The teacher attitude we had met with before didn’t encourage us to believe in ourselves.

“And here， suddenly， was someone who had been observing us closely for a month. And a month when we made things as difficult for her as we could， mind you. And yet she could find something positive[積極的] to say about each and every one of us.

“Once she had delivered the papers， she continued with her teaching and for the first time we forgot to make her life miserable.”

Someone called Bob and he excused himself and left to serve a customer. After a while he returned and continued with his story.

“Mrs. Cosby did this every month from then on. Each month we got a paper that emphasized[強調] our strengths， what we had been good at. I thought no one would ever see anything good about me—I was lousy[討厭的] at school. But she commented on[評價] my courage， how punctual[守時的] I was， how good to settle arguments if I so wanted. And you know what happens when someone keeps telling you what you are good at?”

The truck driver shook his head.

“Well， you begin to act as if that was true. You start to learn more to be even better， to prove them right.

“And so with her positive teacher attitude， she transformed[改變] our class. We did not want to hurt her feelings anymore. We actually started to study. Other students and teachers could not understand what had happened.

“And then came the day of our graduation. Yes， we actually graduated. Mrs. Cosby hugged each and every one of us， and told us with tears in her eyes how proud she was of us.

“‘My dear children，’she said to us，‘I knew you could make it. I knew how good you were， but it seems you did not know it yourself. Too long you had listened and believed the words of others who thought you were hopeless[沒有希望的]. And yet， here you are， and you have proved them wrong. This must be the proudest day of my life!’ ”

“Then she handed each one of us a book. All the encouraging letters through the years were there， in hard cover.

“‘I want you each to keep this book and if ever during your life you feel unworthy[無價值的]， open this and read how good you are. You can be anything you want to be as long as you believe in yourself. Promise me you’ll remember that!’”

Bob sighed.

“And we did. She turned a bunch of misfits[不適應環境的人] into people who could achieve great things—because now we believed in ourselves. We went on to fulfil our dreams. Mine was to own a diner and here I am， instead of ruining my life with alcohol and drugs—and I was already going that way when Mrs. Cosby appeared. So maybe now you understand why that old lady deserves all the respect we can give her.”

The truck driver nodded. Then he asked for his bill.

Bob went to get it and when he returned he saw the truck driver talking on his cell phone. Not wanting to disturb he stood at some distance.

“Honey? Hi， yes， it is me. You know， I thought I would drive home tonight. Yes， I know， it is a long way， but I can make it. You think you might make that special lasagna[烤寬面條] of yours for me? Yes， I’d really like to have some. You know， you should sell that lasagna， it is so good， better than anyone else’s! What? Why do I say so? Well because I think so. Just wanted to let you know you are the best lasagna cook I have ever met! You will? Great， see you in the evening! Love you too!”

Alyssa saw Bob smiling when he returned.

“Let me guess—another one for Mrs. Cosby?”

“Yep，” Bob laughed.

Alyssa smiled and gave Bob a little kiss on the cheek on her way to pour more coffee for a customer.

“You tell about Mrs. Cosby to everyone on purpose， I am sure.”

“Absolutely[絕對地]！That kind of teacher attitude deserves to be spread! And it works， every time. This truck driver just made his wife very happy by telling her what she was good at—making lasagna！Definitely one more point for Mrs. Cosby!”

一位卡車司機正在當地一家餐館吃飯，碰巧看到店門打開了。那也許是他注意到那位走進來的老婦人的唯一原因。她長得非常平凡，有點駝背，幾縷白發從她的帽子里露了出來；她的穿著干凈整潔，也許款式有點舊，但一位老婦人也就是這模樣了。

他啃著漢堡包，以為這位夫人會靜靜地進入某個包間。但她沒有。

只聽見一陣跑動的腳步聲，店主和所有服務生都急忙走出柜臺來迎接老婦人。

“考斯比夫人！”他們叫道，“真高興見到您！”

老婦人微笑著和所有人一一打招呼。

“蘇珊、鮑勃、艾莉莎、卡門……見到大家真高興。你們最近怎樣？過得還好嗎？”

“非常好，真的，考斯比夫人！”餐館老板鮑勃說，“讓我幫您拿外套吧。”

他小心翼翼地接過老婦人的外套。這引起了卡車司機的興趣。他從未見過哪個餐館老板會幫客人拿外套的，而這些年他開著車跑遍了全國。

“我先給您上碗湯。您再決定這次吃些什么，”艾莉莎笑著說罷，便返回廚房。

“那我先給您收拾桌子！”蘇珊說。

于是她開始收拾桌子——先把桌子擦干凈，隨后不知道從哪里變出了一張潔白干凈的桌布。卡門似乎從口袋里拿出一個花瓶，瓶內還插著一支黃玫瑰。

“現在請您坐下，放松一下，考斯比夫人！”鮑勃扶著她坐下，“那……您想喝點什么？加了檸檬的水怎樣？”

鮑勃經過卡車司機的桌子時，司機終于忍不住了。

“打擾一下……”

“什么事？您要加咖啡嗎？”鮑勃問道。

“不，謝謝，也許等會兒。我只是想問問……那位老婦人有什么特別之處嗎？”

“教師的態度，”鮑勃微笑著說。

“教師的態度？”卡車司機簡直不敢相信自己的耳朵。

“假如您能等等的話，我待會兒給您解釋，”鮑勃說。

完全是出于一種好奇心，卡車司機耐心等著。他訝異地看著服務生們使盡渾身解數讓老婦人享受一頓愉快的大餐。她吃完后，鮑勃拒絕收她的錢，還護送她走出門口，站在那里與之揮手告別，直至她走到拐角處，消失在他的視線中。

他隨后轉身看向那位卡車司機，向他走來。

“這就給你講一個關于教師的態度和激勵的重要性的故事，”他一邊說，一邊坐了下來。 “這位考斯比夫人曾是你的老師？”

“是的，最好的一位。雖然最開始我們可沒少給她添麻煩……你知道，每所學校似乎都有那么一個班，每個人都認為這個班的學生不可能畢業。麻煩制造者指的就是我們。”

鮑勃笑了笑。

“沒有哪個老師可以在我們班待很久。因此，一天早晨，教室的門打開了，又一位新老師走了進來。她便是考斯比夫人。我們看著她，認為她也許只能堅持一周。她看起來太溫和了，根本不可能管住我們。而且我們的確讓她吃到了苦頭。但不管我們做什么，她從不發火。然后到了她作為我們老師的第一個月的最后一天。就在這一天，她向我們展示了教師的態度，由此聲名大噪。”

“教師的態度？她作為教師的態度有什么特別之處嗎？”

“她打開公文包，從里面拿出了一疊紙。我們害怕是最糟糕的東西——考試。噢，不是，是讓我們相當驚訝的東西。”

“是什么？”卡車司機問。

“考斯比夫人讓我們每個人走到教室前面，一個接一個，然后給我們每個人發了一張紙。在那張紙上，她寫下了該名學生這個月以來做得最好的事情。”

卡車司機看著鮑勃說：“她給你們每人發了一張寫著你們哪里做得好的紙條，從而展示了她的教師態度？抱歉，我不是很明白。”

“如果你再仔細想想，你就會明白。你看，從來沒有人相信我們、喜歡我們。我們經常被說成是沒有價值的人。而我們自己也開始這樣認為了。我們之前遇到的老師對我們的態度根本不會鼓勵我們去相信自己。

“而現在，突然有那么一個人仔細觀察了我們一個月。提醒你，在這個月里我們無所不用其極地為難她。但她還是發現了我們每一個人積極向上的一面。

“她發完紙條就繼續上課，我們第一次忘了要讓她受罪。”

有人叫鮑勃，他說了聲“抱歉”，便去招待別的客人。過了一會兒，他回來繼續說他的故事。

“從那以后，考斯比夫人每個月都會這么做。每個月我們都拿到一張紙，上面寫著我們的優點——我們擅長的事情。我原以為沒有人會看到我身上的優點——我在學校是個討厭鬼。但她對我的勇氣贊許有加，還說我非常守時，說只要我愿意，就能馬上解決爭端。假如有人一直對你說你擅長什么，你知道接下來會發生什么事嗎？”

卡車司機搖頭。

“喔，你就會開始那么做，就像那是真事一樣。你開始努力學習，想變得更好，證明那是對的。

“就這樣，她用積極的教師態度改變了我們班。我們再也不想傷她的心了。事實上，我們開始聽講學習。其他學生和老師都不明白發生了什么事情。

“然后到了我們畢業那天。是的，我們確實畢業了。考斯比夫人和我們每個人擁抱，并含著淚告訴我們她多么以我們為傲。

“‘我親愛的孩子們，’她對我們說，‘我知道你們能行。我以前就知道你們有多棒，但你們似乎并未意識到這一點。你們聽信那些認為你們毫無希望的人的話太久了。但如今的你們證明了他們是錯的。這是我一生中最自豪的一天！’ ”

“然后她發給我們每人一本冊子。這些年所有鼓勵的信件都在里面，還是硬皮抄的。

“‘我希望你們留著這本冊子，如果你們在日后的生活中覺得自己一無是處，打開它，看看自己有多棒。只要相信自己，你們可以成就任何夢想。答應我你們會記得這點！’”

鮑勃嘆了一聲氣。

“我們照她說的做。她讓一幫不能融入社會的家伙取得了巨大的成就——因為現在我們相信自己。我們繼續追求夢想。我想開一家餐館，現在我做到了，而不是在酗酒吸毒中荒廢人生——在考斯比夫人出現時，我本來已經走上那條邪路了。所以也許現在你會明白為何那位老婦人值得我們如此尊重。”

卡車司機點點頭，打算結賬。

鮑勃去拿賬單，回來時發現卡車司機正在講電話。為了不打擾他，鮑勃站在一邊。

“親愛的？嗨，是，是我。你知道，我想我今晚會開車回家。是，我知道，路程很長，但我可以做到。你可以給我做那道特別的烤寬面條嗎？是，我很想吃。你知道，你應該去賣烤寬面條，它好吃極了，比其他人做的都好吃！什么？為什么我要這樣說？哦，因為我就是這么認為的。只是想讓你知道你是我見過的最棒的烤寬面條師傅！你會做？太好了，晚上見！我也愛你！”

艾莉莎看到鮑勃回來時臉上帶著笑容。

“讓我猜猜——又一個受考斯比夫人感染的人？”

“是的，”鮑勃笑著說。

艾莉莎微微笑了笑，在給客人加咖啡的途中在鮑勃的臉頰上輕輕吻了一下。

“我確信你給每個人講考斯比夫人的故事是有目的的。”

“完全正確！那樣的教師態度值得廣泛傳播！而且它每次都會奏效。這個卡車司機剛剛告訴妻子她的優點——擅長做烤寬面條，讓他妻子很高興！這確實又給考斯比夫人加了一分！”