Thursday, December 8, 2011

A Letter to Mr. Cattanzara (Activity Six)

03/08/1938




 Dear Mr. Cattanzara,
                                                                                             
Only now, after ten years, I got the courage to sit and write this letter.  
First of all, I want(ww.-would like) to apologize to you - I am sorry for having lied to you. I hope you know how important you are to me and how thankful I am for teaching me this lesson.
I was an idiot, I have always dreamed about money and success, but I haven't done anything in order to reach that goal ! I quit school and didn't do anything to pick up my education. So, I lied to you because I didn't want to let you down.

You have always cared about me and I thought that a 20 year old guy might have an education, certainly a guy like me, who has a lot of big dreams for his future. You knew how important it was for me to be respected, and when I told this lie about my reading I thought that I would feel good and you will(gr.) feel good - you will(gr.) be happy that people respect me and that I'm being educated. After a while you found out the truth, but you didn't tell anyone, and I thank you for that, because if you told the truth to the people in the neighborhood I couldn't deal with it. By not telling other people the truth, you let me understand by myself that I was wrong.

I don't even know if you remember our talk that night, but I will not be able to forget it my whole life. You told me that night "don't do what I did" and since that day I wondered what have you(wo.) done... After that talk I closed myself in my room for a week and refused to go out (I only got out to the kitchen when nobody was at home), and after the summer, in the fall, I finally figured out what I should(ww.+gr. - had to) do. Then I went to the library and started reading. I read a great book and then I discovered that actually I really like(gr.-liked) reading.

Today I'm learning(ww.-studying) Literature and Journalism, and that's all thanks to you ! I don't know how to thank you for all the things you have done for me ! I have my own column in the "New-York Times" where I recommend books and even publish my own short stories and poems. Isn't it the newspaper you used to read everynight ? Do you still read it ? How ironic...

Nowadays, I live in a nice private house in a beautiful neighborhood with my wife and my eighteen months old son.

I want you to know - you are one of the most important people in my life. I will not forget you and I will thank you for what you have done for me for the rest of my life.
Thank you !


                                                                 I am gratful and miss you every day, 
                                                                                     Love, George Stoyonovich.


Better.
(94)
Daphna