DIRECTIONS: Walter’s aunt Myra will turn fifty years old this year. To show how important she is to him, Walter wants to write a biographical narrative about his aunt for her birthday. Read the narrative, and answer the question that follows. Here is a rough draft of Walter’s narrative.
(1) I can still remember Aunt Myra’s words that June day when Ernie and I arrived at the ranch. (2) She strode across the porch to welcome us. (3) “Well,” she said in her warm, husky voice, “I see I’m gonna need more bacon for breakfast in the morning. (4) Do you men like pancakes?” (5) She looked straight at the “men,” Ernie and me, and grinned. (6) Ernie looked at me, and I looked at him. (7) Then we both grinned, too. (8) Dad had driven my cousin Ernie and me to spend a month with Aunt Myra and Uncle Rob. (9) I thought I was grown-up, even though I was only thirteen and didn’t really know much. (10) Ernie and I went to help with the ranch work, and I was excited and full of a city kid’s ideas about life in the country. (11) When we got to the ranch, however, I started to have some doubts. (12) Suddenly, a month seemed like a long time to be away from home. (13) That’s when Aunt Myra stepped out on the porch and called me a man. (14) After a few days, Ernie and I settled into ranch life. (15) We worked very hard, but we really had fun, too. (16) One Sunday morning, we went fishing at Plum Creek. (17) While the rest of us were having good luck catching trout, Ernie couldn’t snag a fish that day to save his life. (18) Now, as wonderful as Aunt Myra is, she can’t work miracles, and I don’t believe that anybody could have made a fisherman out of Ernie. (19) However, Aunt Myra’s specialty is seeing what people can do, not what they can’t. (20) Knowing that Ernie had some artistic talent, Aunt Myra began showing him how to tie trout flies. (21) When she introduced him to a new skill, she took his mind off his failure. (22) Aunt Myra knows how to encourage adults as well as kids. (23) Once I went with her to visit Mr. Sellors, a neighbor who had injured his leg in a tractor accident. (24) He was recovering, and his sons were keeping up with the work, but he was feeling useless and depressed. (25) Aunt Myra must have been thinking about him for weeks. (26) Just before we left, she said, “Richard, I’ve got a whole pickup full of saddles and bridles that need repair. (27) It sure would help us out if you’d take a look at ’em and see what you can do.” (28) I’ll probably never have Aunt Myra’s skill with people, but she has shown me how to look for the positive instead of the negative in myself as well as in others.
Which sentence is best for Walter to add after sentence 20?
Soon Ernie’s discouragement gave way to interest as he watched Aunt Myra work.
Her strong hands tied the brightly colored feathers firmly but gently to the tiny hooks.
Needless to say, Ernie had never looked very closely at a trout fly.
Uncle Rob and I pretended not to notice that Ernie was not a very good fisherman.