(八) 儿子打一屁，余香飘白宫是笔者一时高兴加的题目。其实这是女儿获得总统学者奖候选人之后向总统奖委员会提交的一篇命题作文。题目是 Picture Perfect Memory，一张难忘的照片。当女儿获得总统奖之后，我仔细地读了这篇文章。文章讲述的是孩子在家庭生活中一个很普通的真实镜头。那天早上她去参加全州唯一的天才高中班面试，很紧张。一家人开車送她去，爸爸妈妈列了一些注意事项，车上的气氛很严肃。没想到不到八岁但很调皮的妹妹突然冒出一句，如果面对几位考官你突然要打屁怎么办？车内的气氛失调了，五岁的弟弟找到了发言的机会，表演了许多处理措施。就在女儿迈进考场，回头向家人道别的瞬间，缺掉门牙的妹妹，含着幸福泪水的妈妈，满意微笑的爸爸，跷着屁股的弟弟，全家人的音容笑藐成为一张难忘的照片永恆地印在了脑子里，成为永久的喜乐热爰鼓励和祝福。全文字里行间都洋溢着对家庭和生活的热爱，对父母的崇敬和感恩，对弟弟妹妹的喜爰和关照。孩子得奖自然高兴，但发现孩子真正健康地在成长更令人高兴。看完文章我情不自禁地笑道：正是 “儿子放一屁，余香飘白宫”。

Picture Perfect Memory

This is the entrance to the School of Science and Mathematics (SSM), a residential high school for juniors and seniors.  The scene in this photograph is what greets the students every morning on their way to school.  Those clear glass windows on the doors have caught thousands of sparkling high school memories in their reflections.  This is also where one of my most memorable days took place.  However, the main characters from that unforgettable day are nowhere to be seen.  What is missing is my mother, dressed in her favorite blouse and black pants with her permed hair framing her face and accentuating her teary-eyed smile, my father, dressed in his best dark blue suit with a serious yet smiling twinkle in his eye, my little brother, with one arm wrapped around my dad’s leg and the other one is twisted behind him pointing at his bottom, and my sister with her thumbs up framing her gap-toothed grin.

 “MOM!  I still don’t know what I’m going to wear and the interview is in two hours!” I wail, as I stagger around the house trying to find her.  My mom gives me an exasperated look as she leads me to my room and proceeds to calmly pick out a very classy and tidy looking outfit, one I somehow managed to miss on my dozen or so glances through the closet.  As I hurriedly get dressed and run around trying to get my things ready, my mom tries to gather up the rest of the family.  Today is the big day.  I am interviewing for acceptance to the School of Science and Mathematics.  SSM has been my dream school since as far back as I can remember, and today’s interview determines whether or not my dream will come true.  Even with all the preparation, mock interviews, handshakes, and practiced smiles, I still managed to forget a vital part of the process, my interview outfit.  Luckily for me, Mom is always there to help.

              In the car, I’m too nervous to even talk, so I just listen to whatever advice my parents dish out.  Dad runs through a checklist of everything I need to know. 

“Now remember, be yourself.  Remember to smile, it shows your confidence and interviewers love that.  Don’t forget, a firm handshake is extremely important.  And look them in the eye when you talk.”  The list goes on..

“Don’t be nervous. I’m sure they will love you just as you are,” reassures Mom.

 Wait,” interrupts my seven-year-old sister, Rynel, just as I was settling into my seat for the ride.  What if you need to fart while you’re in the room?  Then what do you do?”

I immediately sprang up, staring at my sister in horror.

 “It’s OK!  She can just do it quietly. Like this,” says my emphatic four-year-old brother, Brad, and he proceeds to raise his bottom in the air in an attempt to demonstrate his point. 

“Brad, sit down,” says my mother sternly, as the corners of her mouth twitch slightly. 

“Your sister is very nervous about her interview and we need to give her support, not make fun of her.” Dad says.

I look at my brother and sister with an expression of loving annoyance as they continue to list all of the possible things that could go wrong in my interview and how to overcome each and every one of them.

I gaze at Rynel and Brad with an expression of loving annoyance as they continue to list all of the possible things that could go wrong in my interview and how to overcome each and every one of them. Needless to say, by the time we arrive at the school, I had acquired a wealth of knowledge about interviews already. I learned how to overcome every possible thing that could go wrong in that interview room.  If I get the hiccups, then I should hold my breath until my face turns purple, informs Brad. If I get so nervous that I am shaking like a leaf then I should sit on my hands, Rynel advises me.

“Relax and make sure you have good posture,” says Mom.

Finally, my interview time has arrived.  I turn to greet my interviewer and give him the firm, steady handshake my dad taught me.  I could tell my interviewer was impressed.

“Shall we head on into my office then?” 

I give a quick nod.  I turn back for one last look at my family.  I see my dad give a curt nod of the head, expressing his approval, my mom giving me her proud teary-eyed smile, my sister waving emphatically with a big gap toothed smile, and my brother, smiling and pointing at his bottom.

Click.

I walk toward the office with an air of unbound confidence; the door shuts and my interview begins.

I am currently a senior at SSM.  As I look back on that day almost two years ago, it is amazing to me the amount of support my family has continually given me, on that occasion among many others.  I am lucky to have been blessed with such a wonderful, loving, and supporting family.  Once again, I am going through a time of nervous anticipation and uncertainty, this time about colleges.  My family is still there for me every step of the way. I understand that when I am away at college next year, I will no longer be able to aid my parents in their weekly chores or assist them at our family-owned laboratory on the weekends, nor will I be able to see my brother enter his first day of first-grade or attend my sister’s cheer performances.  I will no longer be able to stock the pantry with my weekly shopping of breakfast and snack foods for Rynel and Brad, or take them to Chinese school on Saturdays. But I know that wherever I go, the love and support my family and I have for each other is something that will endure throughout my life. 

In reality, that photograph of my family on the day of my SSM interview does not exist in any of my photo albums.  It exists only in my memories.  Perhaps it is actually fortunate I do not have this picture in tangible form.  A tangible photo will not always last.  Its color may wear and fade, it may tear, or it may be misplaced. But this photograph that exists in my mind will always contain the colors of vivacity and exuberance that represent the depth of my family’s love for one another.