You are my dictionary

My father was deaf.Even so,Daddy Ben was undefeated.“It is better to laugh at life,” he'd say.“It makes a hard time easier.”

I began to understand what he meant one evening when my mother told me to phone a message to my father at the shop where he worked.I went to a pay phone nearby and dialed the number.When I told the man I had a message for a man called Ben,the man was impatient and puzzled,telling me that he didn't know any Ben there.

All I can remember about the conversation was the word “Dummy” from the man's mouth.I had heard my father described as deaf-and-dumb all through my childhood.I always took pains to explain that although he was deaf,he was not dumb.

“Why do you let your boss call you Dummy?”I asked my father the next day.

He shrugged.“It is easier for them.They remember me.”

I was angry.“You are not a dummy.You are a smart man.Tell them your name is Benjamin.”

He smiled.“It is all right.I know I am not a dummy.I listen with my eyes and that is enough.”Locked in stillness,he was pleased with himself.But I was not.

Dummy.I wrote the hateful word many times in my notebook,tore out the page and crumpled(弄皺） it into a ball.My father saw my anger.“Don't worry,” he said in a harsh (不悅耳的）voice.“I will improve my speaking every day.I will learn new words,and you,Ruth,are my teacher.You are my dictionary.”I hugged him.

From then on,both of us were thirsty for language because we shared the same purpose.With our minds combined in study,we unlocked our intelligence.My father earned respect for his knowledge.No one called him Dummy again.

My job of teaching my father also paid me back generously.Finally,I was accepted by my ideal university of language.It was only then that I realized I did not teach my father.Instead,he taught me.It was he who told me to listen with my eyes and ask with my mouth.In his unique way,my father taught me the true power of speech.

Reading Check

How did the author change her attitude towards his father according to the text?

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