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她很伤心，从臂弯里抬起头，告诉我，她父亲说那些教练讲得不对。他们根本不懂得梦想的力量。她父亲说，如果她真地有心去代表一个好的大学打篮球，如果她真的想获得奖学金，任何东西也不能阻止她，除非她自己没有这个心。
第二年，当她和她的球队去参加北加利福尼亚州冠军赛时，她被一位大学的招生人员看中了。那所大学真地为她提供了一份全额资助的奖学金。父亲又一次跟她说：“如果梦想远大，就一定可以克服艰难险阻。”
I used to watch her from my kitchen window, she seemed so small as she
muscled her way through the crowd of boys on the playground. The school was
across the street from our home and I would often watch the kids as they played
during recess. A sea of children, and yet to me, she stood out from them
all.
I remember the first day I saw her playing basketball. I watched in wonder
as she ran circles around the other kids. She managed to shoot jump shots just
over their heads and into the net. The boys always tried to stop her but no one
could.
I began to notice her at other times, basketball in hand, playing alone.
She would practice dribbling and shooting over and over again, sometimes until
dark. One day I asked her why she practiced so much. She looked directly in my
eyes and without a moment of hesitation she said,"I want to go to college. The
only way I can go is if I get a scholarship. I like basketball. I decided that
if I were good enough, I would get a scholarship. I am going to play college
basketball. I want to be the best. My Daddy told me if the dream is big enough,
the facts don't count." Then she smiled and ran towards the court to recap the
routine I had seen over and over again.
Well, I had to give it to her--- she was determined. I watched her through
those junior high years and into high school. Every week, she led her varsity
team to victory.
One day in her senior year, I saw her sitting in the grass, head cradled in
her arms. I walked across the street and sat down in the cool grass beside her.
Quietly I asked what was wrong. "Oh, nothing," came to a soft reply. "I'm just
too short." The coach told her that at"5'5" she would probably never get to play
for a top ranked team-- much less offered a scholarship-- so she should stop
dreaming about college.
She was heartbroken and I felt my own throat tighten as I sensed her
disappointment. I asked her if she had talked to her dad about it yet.She lifted
her head from her hands and told me that her father said those coaches were
wrong. They just didn't understand the power of a dream. He told her that if she
really wanted to play for a good college, if she truly wanted a scholarship,
that nothing could stop her except one thing-- her own attitude. He told her
again," if the dream is big enough, the facts don't count."
The next year, as she and her team went to the Northern California
Championship game, she was seen by a college recruiter. She was indeed offered a
scholarship, a full ride, to a Division I, NCAA women's basketball team. She was
going to get the college education that she had dreamed of and worked toward for
all those years.
It's true: If the dream is big enough, the facts don't count. |
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发表于 2016-7-10 11:32:28