As Amy Hagadorn rounded the corner across the hall from her classroom, she collided with1 a tall boy from the fifth grade running in the opposite direction.
“Watch it,” the boy yelled. Then, with a silly smile on his face, the boy took hold of his right leg and walked the way Amy limped2 when she walked.
Amy closed her eyes. “Ignore3 him”, she told herself as she headed for4 her classroom.
But at the end of the day, Amy was still thinking about the tall boy's unfriendly way. It wasn't as if he were the only one. It seemed that ever since Amy started the third grade, someone laughed at her every single day. Kids made fun of5 her about her speech or her limping. Amy was tired of it. Sometimes, even in a classroom full of other students, the teasing6 made her feel all alone.
Back home at the dinner table that evening, Amy was quiet. Her mother knew that things were not going well at school. That's why she was happy to have some exciting news to share with her daughter.
“There's a Christmas wish contest on the radio station,” Amy's mom announced. “Write a letter to Santa7, and you might win a prize. I think someone at this table with blonde8 curly9 hair should enter.”
Amy smiled. The contest sounded like fun. She started thinking about what she wanted most for Christmas.
A smile took hold of Amy when the idea first came to her. Out came pencil and paper, and Amy went to work on her letter. “Dear Santa Claus,” she began.
While Amy worked at her letter, the rest of the family tried to guess what she might ask from Santa. Amy's sister, Jamie, and Amy's mom both thought a three-foot Barbie doll10 would top Amy's wish list. Amy's dad guessed a picture book. But Amy wasn't ready to tell her secret Christmas wish just then. Here is Amy's letter to Santa, just as she wrote it that night:
Dear Santa Claus,
My name is Amy. I am nine years old. I have a problem at school. Can you help me, Santa? Kids laugh at me because of the way I walk and run and talk. I have cerebral palsy11. I just want one day where no one laughs at me or makes fun of me.
Love, Amy
At radio station WJLT in Fort Wayne, Indiana, letters poured in12 for the Christmas wish contest. The workers had fun reading about all the different presents that boys and girls from across the city wanted for Christmas.
When Amy's letter arrived at the radio station, manager Lee Tobin read it carefully. He knew cerebral palsy was a muscle disease that might confuse13 the schoolmates of Amy's who didn't understand her disability14. He thought it would be good for the people in Fort Wayne to hear about this special third-grader and her unusual wish. Mr. Tobin called up15 the local newspaper.
The next day, a picture of Amy and her letter to Santa appeared on the front page of the News Sentinel16. The story spread quickly. All across the country, newspapers and radio and television stations reported the story of the little girl in Fort Wayne, Indiana, who asked for such a simple yet remarkable17 Christmas gift—just one day without teasing.
Suddenly the postman was a regular at the Hagadorn house. Envelopes of all sizes addressed18 to Amy arrived daily from children and adults all across the nation. They came filled with holiday greetings and words of encouragement.
During that unforgettable Christmas season, over two thousand people from all over the world sent Amy letters of friendship and support. Amy and her family read every single one. Some of the writers had disabilities; some had been teased as children. Each writer had a special message for Amy. Through the cards and letters from strangers, Amy glimpsed a world full of people who truly cared about each other. She realized that no amount19 or form of teasing could ever make her feel lonely again.
Many people thanked Amy for being brave enough to speak up. Others encouraged her to ignore teasing and to carry her head high. Lynn, a sixth-grader from Texas, sent this message:
“I would like to be your friend,” she wrote, “and if you want to visit me, we could have fun. No one would make fun of us, 'cause20 if they do, we will not even hear them.”
Amy did get her wish of a special day without teasing at South Wayne Elementary School. Additionally21, everyone at school got another surprise. Teachers and students talked together about how bad teasing can make others feel.
That year the Fort Wayne mayor22 officially23 announced December 21 as Amy Jo Hagadorn Day throughout the city. The mayor explained that by daring to make such a simple wish, Amy taught the whole world a lesson.
“Everyone,” said the mayor, “wants and deserves to be treated with respect, dignity24 and warmth.”
埃米·黑格登从教室里出来，穿过走廊，在拐角处迎面撞上了一个从对面跑过来的五年级高个儿男孩。
“看着，”男孩大叫。然后他带着一脸坏笑，拖着他的右腿，模仿埃米的样子瘸着走起来。
埃米闭上眼睛。“不理他！”她对自己一边说，一边往教室走去。
放学的时候，埃米还在想那个高个儿男孩不友好的样子。她不是第一次碰到这种事了。自从埃米上三年级以来，每天都有人嘲笑她。那些孩子总拿她说话和跛行的样子开玩笑。埃米烦透了。有时，即使教室里坐满了同学，这种嘲弄也让她感到非常孤独。
那天晚上回到家，埃米在餐桌上一言不发。妈妈知道她在学校过得不开心，所以她很高兴地把一则激动人心的消息告诉了女儿。
“电台要举办一场圣诞许愿比赛，” 埃米的妈妈说。“只要给圣诞老人写封信，你就可能赢得奖品。我想我们餐桌上这位金色卷发女郎倒是应该参加！”
埃米笑了，这比赛听起来很有趣。她开始琢磨她最想要的圣诞礼物。
埃米有了主意，脸上露出了笑容。她拿出铅笔和纸，准备写信。“亲爱的圣诞老人，”她写道。
埃米写信的时候，家里其他人都在猜测她想要什么圣诞礼物。埃米的妈妈和姐姐杰米都认为一个3英尺高的巴比娃娃是她的首选，埃米的爸爸则猜她可能想要一本画册。但埃米不打算马上透露她要保密的圣诞愿望。下面是埃米当晚写给圣诞老人的信：
亲爱的圣诞老人：
我叫埃米，今年9岁。我在学校有点麻烦，你能帮我吗，圣诞老人？因为我患有脑瘫，其他孩子都嘲笑我走路、跑步和说话的样子。我只希望有一天没有人嘲笑我、戏弄我。
爱你的，埃米
在印第安纳州韦恩堡市WJLT电台里，参加圣诞许愿的信件纷至沓来。这些信出自该市各地孩子们之手，他们想要的圣诞礼物五花八门。工作人员津津有味地读着这些信。
当埃米的信寄达电台时，负责人李·托宾看得很仔细。他知道脑瘫是一种肌肉疾病，埃米的同学可能不清楚这种病，也不理解她的残疾。他认为，让韦恩堡的人们听听这个不一般的三年级学生以及她不寻常的愿望是有好处的。托宾先生立刻给当地的报纸打了电话。
第二天，埃米的照片连同她给圣诞老人的信出现在《新闻卫士》的头版上。消息传播得很快。全国的报纸、电台和电视台都争先报道印第安纳州韦恩堡这个小女孩的故事——她希望得到的圣诞礼物是那么简单而又不同寻常，仅仅是希望有一天不受别人嘲弄！
突然之间，邮递员成了黑格登家的常客。埃米每天都能收到来自全国各地的孩子和大人们的信，信封型号不同，大小有别。信里充满节日的问候和鼓励的话语。
在那个令人难忘的圣诞节，世界各地有两千多人给埃米写信，向她表达友谊和支持。埃米和家人阅读了每一封来信。在那些写信的人当中，有些人也身患残疾，而有些人在孩提时也遭受过嘲弄。每一位写信的人都送给埃米一条特别留言。从这些陌生人寄来的卡片和信件中，埃米看到了一个人们真心相互关爱的世界。她意识到，今后无论受到什么嘲弄，也不会感到孤独了。
许多人感谢埃米勇敢地说出了心里话。还有人鼓励她不要理会别人的嘲笑，抬起头来生活。得克萨斯州一位名叫林恩的六年级学生寄来这样一段话：
“我 愿 意 做 你 的 朋友，”她说，“如果你想来找我，我们会相处得很愉快。没有人会取笑我们，因为即使有人取笑，我们也不要去听。”
埃米的确实现了她的特殊愿望，在南韦恩小学度过了不受嘲弄的一天。而且，让人惊喜的是，师生们共同讨论了嘲弄让人感觉多么不愉快。
当年，韦恩堡市市长在全市宣布12月21日为埃米·乔·黑格登日。市长解释说，埃米敢于许下这样一个平凡的愿望，给全世界的人们上了生动的一课。
市长说：“我们每一个人都希望得到而且理应得到尊重和友善，从而活得有尊严！”
1. collide with 与…相碰撞
2. limp [limp] v. 跛行，瘸着走
3. ignore v. 忽视；不理睬
4. head for前往，朝着某方向前进
5. make fun of 嘲弄；取笑；拿……开玩笑
6. tease v. 取笑；嘲弄
7. Santa = Santa Claus n. 圣诞老人
8. blonde adj. 白肤金发的
9. curly hair 卷曲的头发
10. Barbie Doll 芭比娃娃（美国一种十分畅销的金发碧眼玩具娃娃）
11. cerebral palsy 大脑性麻痹，脑瘫
12. pour in 川流不息地涌入
13. confuse v. 使迷惑，使糊涂
14. disability n. 残疾
15. call up 给…打电话
16. sentinel n. 哨兵；看守人
17. remarkable adj. 不平常的，非凡的
18. address v. 写上姓名地址
19. no amount of 即使再多（再大）（也不）
20. 'cause = because 因为
21. additionally adv. 加之，另外
22. mayor n. 市长
23. officially adv. 正式地；官方地
24. dignity n. 尊严；高贵