WRITE A STORY BEGINNING, ‘I LISTENED TO MY MOTHER’S WORDS WITH EXCITEMENT’
WRITE A STORY BEGINNING, ‘I LISTENED TO MY MOTHER’S WORDS WITH EXCITEMENT’.
I listened to my mother’s words with excitement. She had heard that a local vet, Dr Subramaniam, need an assistant. It seemed too good to be true. I had just finished school and dreaded the thought of filling shelves at the supermarket, the only job that I had heard of so far. On the other hand, I had loved animals for as long as I could remember. At that very moment, in the open space around the house, were several cats which I had found as starving kittens, a lizard which had lost a leg and a bird recovering from a wing injury.
I telephoned Dr Subramaniam’s surgery and the receptionist told me to come for an interview at nine the following morning. ‘Be there on time,’ my mother warned me. ‘Punctuality and a tidy appearance are the most important things at an interview.’ She took me down to town, where I had my hair done and chose a new dress which, I hoped, would make me look my best. I tried hard to feel confident, but I couldn’t help worrying. What would happen if Dr Subramaniam thought I was just a silly girl?
The next morning I set off on foot, practising all the intelligent things I intended to say to Dr Subramaniam. Just before the turning to the road that led up to his house, I saw something lying on the road. It looked like an old piece of grey cloth – but it was moving! I ran forward and saw that it was a cat which had been hit by a car or motor-cycle, covered in blood and mewing in pain. I picked it up. It struggled, scratching and biting, but I soon had it firmly in my arms. Thank goodness we were just outside the vet’s surgery, where it could get proper treatment. I pushed open the door marked ‘Visitors’ and found myself facing the receptionist. ‘Here,’ I gasped, holding out the cat to her. She looked shocked. ‘Are you here for the interview?’ she asked.
It was then I looked down at the dress. It was ruined – torn, filthy and bloodstained. I
I listened to my mother’s words with excitement. She had heard that a local vet, Dr Subramaniam, need an assistant. It seemed too good to be true. I had just finished school and dreaded the thought of filling shelves at the supermarket, the only job that I had heard of so far. On the other hand, I had loved animals for as long as I could remember. At that very moment, in the open space around the house, were several cats which I had found as starving kittens, a lizard which had lost a leg and a bird recovering from a wing injury.
I telephoned Dr Subramaniam’s surgery and the receptionist told me to come for an interview at nine the following morning. ‘Be there on time,’ my mother warned me. ‘Punctuality and a tidy appearance are the most important things at an interview.’ She took me down to town, where I had my hair done and chose a new dress which, I hoped, would make me look my best. I tried hard to feel confident, but I couldn’t help worrying. What would happen if Dr Subramaniam thought I was just a silly girl?
The next morning I set off on foot, practising all the intelligent things I intended to say to Dr Subramaniam. Just before the turning to the road that led up to his house, I saw something lying on the road. It looked like an old piece of grey cloth – but it was moving! I ran forward and saw that it was a cat which had been hit by a car or motor-cycle, covered in blood and mewing in pain. I picked it up. It struggled, scratching and biting, but I soon had it firmly in my arms. Thank goodness we were just outside the vet’s surgery, where it could get proper treatment. I pushed open the door marked ‘Visitors’ and found myself facing the receptionist. ‘Here,’ I gasped, holding out the cat to her. She looked shocked. ‘Are you here for the interview?’ she asked.
It was then I looked down at the dress. It was ruined – torn, filthy and bloodstained. I