new glasses_an all-new “look”

名称：new glasses_an all-new “look”
内容简介：
Dear Arizona,
　 I just found out I have to wear glasses. I’m afraid people will tease me. How should I act if the bullies at school start bugging me?
　 — Getting Glasses in Gettysburg



Dear Getting Glasses,
　 As soon as I read your letter, I thought of Tito. You know how there always seems to be one kid in class who’s naturally great at every sport? Well, in my class, that kid is Tito. So, when we were playing indoor soccer in gym class and Tito kept messing up, I knew something unusual had to be going on.

“Dude! What happened?” called Ryan. “I passed that right to you!”

“Didn’t you see me, Tito?” called Mareya. “I was totally open!”

“Remember the old days, when you were good at this game?” said Mike, laughing.

“I know you’re joking around,” I said to Mike, “but don’t you think that was a little harsh?”

“He knows I’m just kidding!” said Mike.

And, normally, Mike would have been right. Normally, Tito is so confident when it comes to sports that he doesn’t mind some friendly teasing. But today he wasn’t laughing.

“Would everyone please give me a break?” he blurted out. “I couldn’t see because I had something in my eye, OK?”

Later that day, I went over to Tito at lunch and asked if his eye was feeling better.


“Yeah, all better,” he said. And right after that, an eyeglasses case dropped out of his backpack.

“I didn’t know you wore glasses,” I said. “I don’t,” said Tito. “I’m just supposed to.”

“Put them on,” I said. “Let’s see what they look like.”

“No way. People would give me such a hard time if they found out I wore these things!” Tito put the case into his backpack and zipped the bag shut.

“Is that the real reason you couldn’t see very well during the soccer game?” I asked. “Because you’re supposed to be wearing glasses?”

“Arizona, you can’t tell anyone about this!” “I’m not planning to tell anyone,” I said, “but you should let people know. Don’t you think that being able to see matters more than what other people might say?”

“I can see without glasses,” Tito said. “Just not that well.”

Right about then, the bell rang. Tito and I walked back to class and didn’t mention the glasses again. Not that day. Not the day after that. Not the entire week.

I don’t know if anyone else noticed that Tito was squinting when he looked at the board, but I did. I kept wishing he’d just wear his glasses.

Then something interesting happened. This other kid named Tyler showed up in class one day wearing a brand-new pair of glasses.

“Nice specs!” said Noah.

“Thanks,” said Tyler. “Now I have X-ray vision!”

“Awesome,” said Emma, laughing. “I wish I had a pair.”

“I think glasses make people look strange,” said Hannah.

“Well, I need them to see just how strange people look,” said Tyler, peering closely at Hannah through his lenses.

Everyone laughed. Anyway, it wasn’t as if Tito suddenly said, “Hey, guess what, guys! I have glasses, too!” But a couple of days later, he came in wearing his glasses, and that was that. Maybe there were a few little jokes at first, but for the most part, people hardly seemed to notice.

What people did notice, though, was that Tito went right back to being the best athlete around. He wears special sports glasses and has no trouble keeping his eye on the ball!

So, dear Getting Glasses, I hope you’ll stop worrying. You may be surprised by the positive reaction you’ll get from your classmates. In my school, glasses have actually become cool, and lots of kids wish they wore them.

If, for some silly reason, kids in your school do end up teasing you about your new glasses, just try to ignore them or laugh off their comments. In general, teasers are out for attention, and when you don’t act bothered, it’s a lot less fun for them to tease you. Remember that the kids worth hanging out with are the ones who like you for who you are, not what you wear.

Now go out there and have fun looking at the world clearly!

Ciao for now,

Arizona