shortcomings

I posed the question: How have you changed and grown up in the past year?

My students wrote for 15 minutes on this question, and then handed in the assignment.

Helen, a student in one of my Chinese sophomore classes wrote:

"There are really many things changed. At first, I found I'am old and looks not like a girl but a maid. I have to pay more attention to my face because I find few wrinkle. It's really a terrible thing... I find many shortcomings and I'am trying to correct them, for example, lazy and gluttonous, shilly-shally, careless, crude and rash and dilatory and so on. Oh, so many, aren't they? I am changing from small things and I will be found change a lot and some day and become a good person. Come on, Helen."

First of all, this girl is only 20 years old, and she DOES NOT look like an old maid. As for lazy, she just raced in the recent sports meet, competing for time in the mile run, and as for gluttonous, the girl probably weighs about 105 pounds.

Shilly-shally? I had to look this one up in the dictionary. It means: to procrastinate. to be unable to come up with a decision.

Since I've been here, I've noticed that Chinese people keep a record of their shortcomings, and announce them whenever possible. Is this a way of being humble? Or a way to always keep in mind that we all need to constantly improve ourselves?

I admire the Chinese for their frankness. Helen inspired me to write a list of my own shortcomings.

They are as follows:

over-sensitive
lazy
worrisome
gluttinous (If Helen is, I definetly am)
quick to anger, quick to get upset
not looking before I leap
taking too much onto my plate, and then feeling overwhelmed
over expectant of others
impatient
non commital
distain of athority
day-dreamy


I, too like Helen, plan to work on these shortcomings in the following year.