阅读理解Everyone was happy on Saturday morning, but not Tom. He sat in front of a high fence(围栏). "Too bad! It's a nice Saturday morning but I must paint the fence. My friends are playing, but I'm sitting here. " He got up slowly and started to paint. Then he had a great idea.
His friend Ben was walking down the street and he was eating a big red apple. He saw Tom and said, "Tom, I'm going swimming, but you can't come with me. You're working. "
Tom said, "I like it! I can go swimming every day, but I can't paint a fence every day. "
Ben was surprised and he watched Tom. He painted slowly and carefully, and he often smiled. He looked happy. At this time, Ben wanted to paint too.
"Listen, Tom, let me paint a little, " said Ben. "I want to try. "
Tom looked at Ben and said, "I'm really sorry, Ben, but Aunt Polly wants me to do it. You know, I'm very good at painting. My brother Sid wants to do it, but he's not good at painting. "
"Oh, Tom, let me try, please!" said Ben. "Here, you can have my apple. "
Tom was happy but he didn't smile. "OK, Ben, you can paint for a short time. "
Then Tom's other friends came by. They watched Tom paint and they all wanted to try. They gave Tom a new kite, a cat, an old knife, a key and some other things.
Tom's friends painted the big fence, and Tom just sat under the big tree and watched them. He thought, "When something is difficult to get, everyone wants it. "
(Adapted from The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain)