English Reading Practice

Moral Story Number 14:
Be Worthy of Trust

1. Watch the video at the top of the page.

2. Read the story "Be Worthy of Trust" just below it.

3. Do the exercises at the bottom of the page.

Here is the Be Worthy of Trust video. You can watch it in your own language at The Way to Happiness Foundation. (Simply click the word "language" at the top right corner of that page.) 



The Way to Happiness is a common sense guide to better living which has been distributed to more than 100 million people in over 100 languages. It describes 21 principles to a better quality of life.

Principle number 14 is "Be Worthy of Trust."

Now read the short story about this important principle.

Be Worthy of Trust

Angela and Darren have two children. Their son, Kyle, is twenty years old. He helps them take care of his little sister, Rita, who is only six. He loves her very much, and he is happy that he can help his parents to take care of her. But sometimes it can feel like a lot of work.

One Friday afternoon, Kyle's parents both have to work late. They ask him to pick Rita up at school in the afternoon. Of course Kyle says yes, because he does not have any plans and he knows it is very important to help his parents when he can.

Around 3:00 in the afternoon, Kyle gets a call on his cell phone from his best friend, Peter.

"Kyle! Forget about whatever plans you had for today!" his friend exclaims. "Jessica's mother just offered to let us use her country house this weekend!"

The only thing their friend Jessica can ever talk about is her mother's enormous, luxurious country house. It has lots of bedrooms, a huge swimming pool, and an well-equipped gym room. They can also listen to very loud music there because there are no neighbors to complain. Kyle and his friends always talk about going there.

"Come on, we will leave in fifteen minutes! Get ready!" Peter exclaims.

Kyle looks at his watch and thinks about how much fun he could have with his friends in the country. He knows the teachers at Rita's school will call his grandmother if he does not pick her up. He hesitates for a moment, very tempted to go with his friends.

But of course he knows he cannot let his parents and sister down and leave Rita alone. He tells his friend thank you for the invitation, but he has made a promise that he really must keep. Realizing he does not have much time left, Kyle rushes to his sister's school.

He is five minutes late, and when he gets there, he sees that Rita is very scared and is about to cry. She is the last student at the school, and the teachers are waiting with her.

When she sees her big brother rushing to the door of the school, Rita smiles and laughs with relief. She runs to him and gives him a big hug. She says she is very happy to see him. Kyle realizes that he has done the right thing. He must always keep his word and be worthy of trust because his decisions influence other people's lives. 

And now, practice:

Exercises

Vocabulary Questions

1. What does "worthy" mean?



2. What does "trust" mean?



3. What does "luxurious" mean?

Grammar Questions

1. Kyle realizes that he ________ the right thing.



2. Come on, we will leave ________ fifteen minutes!



3. He loves ________ very much.

Comprehension Questions

1. What will Kyle's friends do this weekend? 2. Why does Kyle say he cannot go with them? 3. In your opinion, why is it important to be worthy of trust?

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