1jonas was careful about language. not like his friend, asher, who talked too fast and mixed things up, scrambling words and phrases until they were barely recognizable and often very funny. 2 jonas grinned, remembering the morning that asher had dashed into the classroom, late as usual, arriving breathlessly in the middle of the chanting of the morning anthem. when the class took their seats at the conclusion of the patriotic hymn, asher remained standing to make his public apology as was required. 3 “i apologize for inconveniencing my learning community.” asher ran through the standard apology phrase rapidly, still catching his breath. the students had all been grinning, because they had listened to asher’s explanations so many times before. 4 “i left home at the correct time but when i was riding along near the hatchery, the crew was separating some salmon. i guess i just got distraught, watching them. 5 “i apologize to my classmates,” asher concluded. he smoothed his rumpled tunic and sat down. 6 “we accept your apology, asher.” the class recited the standard response in unison. many of the students were biting their lips to keep from laughing. 7 “i accept your apology, asher,” the instructor said. he was smiling. “and i you, because once again you have provided an opportunity for a lesson in language. ‘distraught’ is too strong an adjective to describe salmon-viewing.” 8 he turned and wrote “distraught” on the instructional board. beside it he wrote “distracted.” 9 jonas, nearing his home now, smiled at the recollection. thinking, still, as he wheeled his bike into its narrow port beside the door, he realized that frightened was the wrong word to describe his feelings, now that december was almost here. it was too strong an adjective. from this passage you can predict that: jonas will never be late like asher. asher will learn to be more careful with language in the future. something important will happen to jonas in december. asher will never be late again.