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Illustrated English Reading Practice
Story, Comic Book, Exercises,
and Answer Key

Moral Story Number 14:
Be Worthy of Trust

1. Watch the following video (about 1 minute long).

2. Then, download the free full version of the booklet (contains story, comic book, exercises, and answer key).

3. Read the comic book "Be Worthy of Trust" starting on page 5 of the booklet.

4. Read the story "Be Worthy of Trust" starting on page 31 of the booklet (also available online on this page).

5. Do the exercises starting on page 35 of this booklet (also available online on this page).

6. Use the answer key at the end of the booklet to check the answers.


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.

Click here if you want to get The Educator’s Resource Kit, which includes booklets, posters, audiovisual aids and practical activities.

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You can also use the following partial online version (the comic book and answer key are not included in the online version).

Be Worthy of Trust

The Designer and
the Fashion Magazine
by Lilach Ritzes

Helen sits in the living room of her small apartment. She looks for a job as a graphic designer in job ads online and in newspapers. She does this every day for months!

One morning, as she sits in her living room as usual and looks for a job, her phone rings. It is her mother.

"Did you find a job?" her mother asks.

"No," Helen replies. "I am still looking for one."

"But you finished university six months ago," her mother says. "You studied for four years to get your design degree…"

Helen interrupts her. "That is true, and I also took all the software courses I could. But I have no experience as a graphic designer and no recommendations, so employers do not want me. They do not know if they can trust me."

Helen looks at the stack of bills she has to pay. If she does not find a job soon, she will be in trouble! Suddenly, one ad catches her eye.

"A graphic designer is needed for a very well-known fashion magazine called TOP. No experience required," the ad reads.

Helen quickly says goodbye to her mother and calls the phone number listed in the ad. Helen is excited! She knows TOP magazine, and it looks like a very good opportunity.

The phone conversation is very brief. A woman's voice tells Helen, "Come at five."

Helen quickly gets ready and leaves her apartment. Still excited, she takes the train to a tall building with a big sign that says "TOP Magazine." Helen takes the elevator to 10th floor for her interview.

She is interviewed by a nice woman named Jenny. Jenny is the editor. While Jenny looks at Helen's portfolio, she asks, "Who is Momo Manal?"

"He is a French fashion designer," Helen quickly answers. "He is one of the world's best designers and a leader in fashion."

Jenny goes over Helen's portfolio. She smiles and tells Helen she is hired. She introduces Helen to the other workers and shows her where she will work.

The editor soon announces the next issue of the magazine. It will have a 60s theme! Helen begins to work very hard around the clock. She knows the magazine must be ready for approval in just a few days.

Helen stays up late into the night. She really wants to do a good job and prove that she is trustworthy. She finally finishes the design on time and calls the magazine editor. Everyone looks at the magazine and loves Helen's work! She is very happy.

Suddenly the manager comes in very excited. She says that she has been invited to a Momo Manal fashion show! Everyone is very excited. They know it is nearly impossible to get an invitation.

The next day, the photographer sneaks into to the manager's office and steals the invitation. He asks Helen to make a copy of the invitation for him. She is frightened and tells him it is illegal. He must return the stolen invitation right away.

The photographer begs her to help him. He says that he really must go to that fashion show. "No one will find out," he assures her. Helen finally agrees and makes him a very similar copy. As she works, Helen does not notice the editor looking into her office.

That night at home, Helen sees on television that unemployment is high. She is really glad that she has a good job! As she goes to bed, she feels worried. At work, she is a trusted member of the team. But she copied that invitation and betrayed their trust. Nobody knows about that, but still she feels bad about doing it.

When Helen comes to work the next day, she sees a few of her co-workers at the printer. They are making copies of the invitation she made for the photographer. Everyone in the office has one! Helen panics. She betrayed the trust they put in her. And now she could lose her job and get the entire company in trouble!

She begins to shout at everyone to stop, but no one hears her over the noise of the printer and everyone shouting excitedly. Helen unplugs the machine and shouts, "Stop!"

Everyone is silent as Helen shouts that they must destroy the copies. More softly, she says, "I made a big mistake. I should not have copied the invitation." She looks at the floor, ashamed. Now she is sure she will lose her job and that everyone in the office will feel they made a mistake by trusting her. She cannot believe it. What will her family say?

Everyone looks at Helen in silence. Then they all simply say, "Okay." They go back to work as if nothing has happened. Helen is confused. How could it be so easy?

The editor walks up to her and says, "This was only a little prank. We will let you keep your job this time, but I hope that you will never do something like this again. I want to trust you."

Helen cannot believe it! Breathing a sigh of relief, she says, "No! You can be sure that I will never do anything like that again! I will work hard to earn your trust."

And now, practice:

Exercises

Vocabulary Questions

1. What does "software" mean?



2. What does "printer" mean?



3. What does "brief" mean?



4. What does "stack" mean?



5. What does "trouble" mean?



6. What does "portfolio" mean?



7. What does "prank" mean?



8. What does "forgery" mean?

Expressions Questions

1. What does "as usual" mean?



2. What does "catches her eye" mean?



3. What does "around the clock" mean?



4. What does "on time" mean?


5. What does "find out" mean?

Grammar Questions

1. Helen looks at the stack of bills she _________ to pay.



2. Helen begins to work very hard _________ the clock.



3. As she works, Helen does not notice the editor _________ into her office.


4. We will _________ you keep your job.



5. You can ________ sure that I will never do anything like that again!

Comprehension Questions (Video and Story)

1. After watching the video at the top of the page, describe in your own words what you understand from the video. 2. The video shows that sometimes you have to make a big effort to be worthy of someone's trust. What do you think about it? 3. What important question does Helen answer correctly in her job interview? 4. What does the photographer ask Helen to do? 5. In your opinion, why is it important to be worthy of trust?

Essay Questions

1. Helen graduated six months ago, but she is still looking for a job. She says she cannot find one because she does not have experience. What can she do to overcome this barrier? 2. Think of the best job you have had. What was it? What were your responsibilities? 3. Helen agrees to copy the invitation even though she does not think it is a good idea. Why do you think she agrees to do it? 4. Helen's boss decides not to fire Helen. She decides to play a prank to teach Helen a lesson. Why do you think she decides to do this? 5. It is hard for Helen to get to sleep at night after she forges the invitation. Why do you think this happens to her? 6. In your opinion, how can being trusted by others benefit you?

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