After spending three days in a wheelchair, I was ready to quit. Not only did I have to battle cracked (裂缝的) and uneven (不平的) pavements, I had to deal with the bad attitude of pedestrians (行人) and a cold rain. But I didn’t give up because of people like Tiffany Payne.
Payne, who has been using a wheelchair for 18 years, laughed at me:
“Imagine trying to get around town in the winter,” she said.
I could see her point: You’re battling to get to a doctor’s appointment (预约), but no one has shoveled (铲) after a big snowfall. Your choices: Move out and risk getting stuck, or reschedule the appointment.
Those of us fortunate enough to get around on our own two legs don’t give a second thought to the person in a wheelchair next to us at a crosswalk. That would require us to look down.
So I decided to try using a wheelchair to get a sample of what their lives are like. It wasn’t long before I saw that people who use wheelchairs are forced to deal with a lot of trouble.
During my experiment, I was ignored by store staff while shopping and bumped into by inattentive (疏忽的) walkers without so much as an apology.
Some people even gave me angry looks as if I were the one at fault.
Once in a store, a woman bumped into me trying to get to the new iPad. She didn’t say, “Excuse me.”
When salespeople did offer assistance, they talked to people who were with me, instead of me. I wanted to yell: “Hey, I’m down here!”
Some salespeople talked to me as though I were a child or acted like they didn’t want to be bothered with me.
People who use wheelchairs want to be treated like everyone else. They also comprehend (理解), so you don’t have to speak to them in a childlike, sing-song voice. It’s not very appealing (吸引人的), especially when the person is an adult. And most importantly, remember they have feelings that can be hurt just like yours.
Spending three days in a wheelchair made me look differently at those who have to use one. I hope you do the same.
By James E. Causey
小题1:The author writes the story to _______.
A．help those in wheelchairs gain self-confidence
B．share his experience of acting as a wheelch
air user
C．ask people to show sympathy for those in wheelchairs
D．call on people to respect and help those in wheelchairs小题2: During his three days in a wheelchair, the author met all of the following
difficulties EXCEPT ______.
A．bad road conditions
B．poor attitudes of ordinary people
C．terrible medical service
D．bad weather小题3: What can we conclude from the article?
A．A wheelchair user may feel offended when you do not address him or her directly.
B．Assistants in big stores are usually kind to people in wheelchairs.
C．People in wheelchairs should fight for fair treatment.
D．People in wheelchairs are usually hard to get along with.小题4: Which of the following statements would the author agree to?
A．Look down on a person in a wheelchair.
B．Speak to a person in a wheelchair in a sing-song voice.
C．Treat a person in a wheelchair as you would any other person.
D．Offer assistance to a person in a wheelchair without asking for permission.
