完形填空
They say after a parents dies, the surviving children can taken on some of their parent's characteristics. I 1becoming anything like my dad for years 2I wanted to be me, not him; but there I sat at his memorial service several months ago, telling myself, “ You've 3a lot more of your dad in you than you think.”
There is this phrase my dad 4, and I know I'm going to sound 5to complain about it, but it used to 6me. “ I am so proud of you,” he told us kids, whether we'd won a race or helped others. That should be a (n) 7thing, but here's what always 8 my mind: “ You are taking credit for what isn't really yours. You can be proud, but the 9 is mine.
Your parent is doing his best to give you 10, but you do not 11it. “ I'm so proud of you.” It came out of my dad's mouth 12, on those calls where I might have 13 something that happened at work or when he and Mom came to visit and we 14the talents of our two boys. I knew the feeling of parental 15well, especially when my boys achieved in ways that were 16my comprehension and ability, but I looked for other ways to 17 it. “ That's an extremely good story you've written!” I would say about the composition. I thought that by making my praise 18, it would feel like I was claiming their achievement less as mine and more as one they could own themselves.
So just the other day when my older son sent me an email about his scholarship, I searched for 19things to say, but finally20he doesn't need my cleverness. They just want what my dad gave me. “ I'm so proud of you,” I wrote. Just like the old man to me.
