“Do you want to come riding with us in the park this Saturday？” Eric asked. He and Dave were great at riding bikes.
　　“Of course！” Pete replied. Pete smiled at his friends Eric and Dave， but inside his stomach twisted1 into a knot2. He didn’t even know how to ride， but how could he tell his friends that？ It was embarrassing.
　　When he went home that night， he got out his bike. Even though he couldn’t ride， he had a bike. His parents had bought it for his birthday a few months back. When he’d first gotten it， he’d been excited and had tried to learn. After a day or two and a scraped3 knee， he’d given up. His mother smiled now to see him trying again， but he just gave her an angry look. It was embarrassing to not be able to ride a bike！
　　So Pete walked his bike across the street to the parking lot and tried to ride again. It was hard to keep from falling when he first started. He liked to keep both feet on the ground and just push himself along， because whenever he tried to push the pedals4， he fell over. After half an hour of trying， he still couldn’t ride， and his legs hurt. He’d scraped his elbow5， too！He didn’t know what he was going to do.
　　“It’ll be alright， dear. You’ll get it. Just keep trying，” his mother said. She was trying to be understanding， but it just made Pete angrier. He felt helpless. Even babies could ride bikes， right？
　　The next day at school， Eric and Dave sat with him at lunch. “Are you ready for the big bike trip on Saturday？” Dave asked.
　　“Oh， that，” Pete said sadly. He chewed6 his lunch and didn’t want to say anything. It was hard to swallow7 his food， let alone his pride. How could he admit8 to his best friends that he couldn’t ride a bike？
　　“What’s wrong？” Eric asked. He looked concerned9. “Are you busy this Saturday？”
　　“No. It’s just...” Here it goes， Pete thought. They’re going to laugh at me if I tell them.
　　“You can’t ride a bike.” Dave said.
　　Pete opened his mouth. He almost lied and said he could， but he didn’t like to lie to his friends. “No. I can’t.”
　　“We know already，” Eric said. “Why do you think we invited you？”
　　“Really？” Pete looked puzzled. “Why would you invite me if I can’t ride a bike？”
　　Eric was surprised that Pete would even ask. “You’ve got the coolest bike in school， and we’re friends. We want to see you ride it. We’re going to help you learn！”
　　Pete couldn’t believe what he was hearing. “Wow！ That’s great. I thought you were going to make fun of me.” 　　Dave shook his head. “We’re your friends. Why would we do that？”
　　“I don’t know，” Pete shrugged10. “I guess I was just too proud to ask for help.”
　　That Saturday， Pete finally learned to ride his bike. He also learned a little something about humility11 and asking for help.
　　“这个星期六你想和我们一起去公园骑自行车吗？”埃里克问道。他和戴夫很擅长骑自行车。
　　“当然！”皮特回答。皮特对着他的朋友埃里克和戴夫笑了笑，但他的胃里却揪成一团。他甚至都不会骑自行车，但他怎么能告诉他的朋友呢？那太令人尷尬了。
　　那天晚上回家时，他把自行车拿出来了。尽管他不会骑车，但他有一辆自行车，那是几个月前父母给他买的生日礼物。刚得到它的时候，他一直很兴奋并且学着骑。过了一两天，擦伤了膝盖后，他就放弃了。现在他妈妈笑着看他又开始尝试，但他只是生气地看了她一眼。不会骑自行车很令人尴尬！
　　于是皮特推着自行车穿过街道来到停车场，试着再骑一次。刚开始时，很难不摔倒。他喜欢双脚着地，把自己往前推，因为每当试着踩踏板时，他都会摔倒。试了半个小时，他还是骑不会，腿也受伤了。他还擦伤了胳膊肘！他不知道他接下来该怎么办。
　　“没事的，亲爱的。你会学会的，只要继续努力。”他妈妈说。她试着表示体谅，但这让皮特更生气，他感到很无助。连婴儿都会骑自行车，对吧？
　　第二天在学校，埃里克和戴夫同他坐在一起吃午饭。“你准备好星期六的自行车之旅了吗？”戴夫问道。
　　“哦，那个。”皮特难过地说。他嚼了嚼午饭，什么也不想说。他食不下咽，更难以放下虚荣心。他怎么能向他最好的朋友承认自己不会骑自行车呢？
　　“怎么了？”埃里克问道，他看上去很担心。“你这个星期六忙吗？”
　　“不，只是……”就是这样，皮特想。如果告诉他们，他们会嘲笑我。
　　“你不会骑自行车。”戴夫说。
　　皮特张大了嘴。他差点撒谎说他会，但他不喜欢对朋友撒谎。“是的，我不会。”
　　“我们已经知道了。”埃里克说，“你以为我们为什么邀请你？”
　　“真的吗？”皮特看起来很困惑。“如果我不会骑自行车，你为什么要邀请我？”
　　埃里克很惊讶皮特竟然会问出来。“你有学校里最酷的自行车，而且我们是朋友，我们想看你骑那辆车。我们会帮你学会骑的！”
　　皮特不敢相信他听到的话。“哇！太好了。我以为你们会取笑我。”
　　戴夫摇摇头说：“我们是你的朋友。我们为什么要那样做？”
　　“我不知道。”皮特耸耸肩说，“我想我是太高傲了，不肯寻求帮助。”
　　那个星期六，皮特终于学会了骑自行车。他也学会了谦逊和向他人求助。
　　（英语原文选自：HaveFunTeaching.com）
　　【Notes】
　　1. twist [■] v. 使弯曲;拧 2. knot [■] n. （绳等的）结
　　3. scrape [■] v. 擦伤 4. pedal [■] n. （车辆，乐器的）踏板
　　5. elbow [■] n. 肘部 6. chew [■] v. 咀嚼
　　7. swallow [■] v. 吞下;咽下 8. admit [■] v. 承认
　　9. concerned [■] adj. 有关的;关心的 10. shrug [■] v. 耸肩，耸肩表示
　　11. humility [■] n. 谦卑，谦逊