Nathan awoke to the sound of the truck horn, realizing that he had overslept. He dressed quickly and headed out of the house, gr
abbing an apple on his way.
His grandfather called from the truck. "Come on. We've got to get that soil bed ready."
"Sorry, Granddad, I overslept."
Nathan was dreading spending the day moving rocks and dirt for Mrs. Shelton's new garden. "I guess I'm going to do the dirty work," he said as he trudged toward the truck.
"You want to earn money for that trip, don't you?"
"Yeah, but I didn't think I'd have to do hard labor for it."
"Let's go." As he climbed into the pickup, his grandfather added, "Learn to work hard now. Then, if you have to later in life, you'll know how."
"Can't I just learn later?" groaned Nathan.
"No," groused Granddad, as they rumbled down the road leaving a hot cloud of dust in their wake.
Once at the Shelton place, they got to work immediately. In no time, Nathan was drenched in sweat and feeling a growing ache in his untrained arm muscles as he lifted one rock after another and carried it to the edge of the soil bed. His grandfather handed him a towel and a cold bottle of water. "After a few days, you'll feel better," he said. "And you'll enjoy that trip more knowing you paid for it all by yourself." Nathan doubted that.
By the time they stopped, Nathan wondered if he'd have the energy to enjoy the trip. Still, that night, he dreamed of catching dozens of beautiful yellow perch with his shiny new rod and reel.
Throughout the next several days, Nathan's daydreams distracted him from the muggy heat. And Granddad was right: his arms did begin to ache less. As the days turned to weeks, Nathan began to look forward to the rumble of the truck each morning that announced his grandfather's arrival. He began to see another side of his grandfather, as the man mixed preachments about hard work with jokes and funny stories of his own fishing adventures.
On the day their work was finished, Nathan stood with Granddad admiring the neatly prepared soil bed, remembering what it had once been like. He felt good about it. Then, Granddad handed him an envelope. "Enjoy your fishing trip, son."
"Thanks, Granddad," replied Nathan, and they headed for the truck.
Nathan was rather quiet on the ride home, and Granddad left him to his thoughts. That was just as well because Nathan was not daydreaming about his upcoming trip; his mind was on something else.
Back at home, Nathan paused before getting out of the truck. "Granddad, I'm glad I earned the money to go on the fishing trip, but I was thinking. We both like to fish, and I don't have long before school starts again. How about we go fishing together?"
"But what about your trip?" asked Granddad, as his face crinkled into a wide grin.
"It can wait until next summer," said Nathan, smiling back at him.
4
Which of these is an accurate characterization of the grandfather's view of Nathan?
A.
He thinks Nathan is lazy and should not go on the fishing trip.
B.
He wants Nathan to spend every summer working hard.
C.
He cares about showing off his only grandson to Mrs. Shelton.
D.
He cares about him and wants to teach him about life.
