“Sorry” First

阮超

人无完人，金无足赤，每个人都会犯错误。这时如果及时有效地表达一份真诚的道歉则是至关重要的，它不仅可以表现你优雅的风度，也是与他人良好沟通的一个重要部分。

“Sorry” First

There is one word that is on the lips of Americans， day and night： “Sorry.”

One time as I was walking along the street， and a young man ran by hurriedly， brushing against my handbag. Even in a rush， he didnt forget to apologize1.

One day， after I bought a mango， the salesman was giving me the change， but I wasnt ready for it and a coin dropped to the ground. “Im sorry.” he said while bending down to pick it up. I was puzzled2—why would he apologize when it was my fault？

Another time， I stepped on a mans foot in an escalator3. At the same time， we both said “sorry”. I thought it interesting： was it really necessary for him to apologize？

Later on， an American friend explained to me that according to the American mentality4， an escalator is a public place， and everyone should be able to stand on it. After someone occupies a position on an escalator， making it difficult for someone else to find a place to stand on， isnt it necessary to express an apology5？

If you go to the movies and the tickets happen to be sold out， the ticket seller will say， “Sorry， the tickets are sold out.”

Whenever one of your hopes goes unfulfilled6， an American will say “sorry”， as a sign of sympathy7.

During my stay in America， I often came across situations in which I was supposed to say “sorry”. Gradually， I realized that when friction8 occurs9 in daily life， Americans dont care much about who is responsible： if someone important is very busy， the secretary will say， “sorry.” If someone is angry， a “sorry” cools tempers10—and human generosity11 is displayed12. Perhaps this is why I seldom saw anyone quarreling on the buses， subways or streets of America.

（湖北黃石   阮   超   供稿）

Notes： 1. apologize v. 道歉  2. puzzled adj. 感到困惑的 3. escalator n. 自动梯 4. mentality n. 心理 5. apology n. 道歉 6. unfulfilled adj. 未实现的 7. sympathy v. 同情 8. friction n. 摩擦 9. occur v. 发生 10. temper n. 脾气  11. generosity n. 豁达 12. display v. 显示