David’s mother was very kind- very much like our own mother.

We thought Pampango mothers must be

different. But she was not. She was very fond of David. She said she was glad he had found new
playmates. She wanted David to be happy. She thanked us for being nice to him. And we felt rather
guilty of the way we had treated David at the beginning of the school year.

Then it turned out that David had been to many places. Because of his father’s job, the family had to
move about. David had lived in Bacolod, Zamboanga, Aparri, and many other places we had only read
about in geography books. Goodness! We had thought that those names only stood for little marks on
the map. Now we learned from David that they were actual towns with houses, and people, and trees,
and schools, and churches.

Paraphrase

The mom of David was very kind— like to our own mom. We believed the mothers of Pampango had to
be distinct. But it wasn't she. She liked David very much. She said she was happy that fresh playmates
had been discovered. She wanted to be pleased with David. She thanked us that she was lovely to him.
And we felt rather guilty at the start of the college year of how we handled David.

Then it turned out there were many areas where David had been. The family had to move around
because of his father's work. David had been living in Bacolod, Zamboanga, Aparri, and many other
locations that we only read about in books on geography. Goodness! We believed those names were on
the map only for small marks. We learned from David now that they were real cities with buildings,
individuals, trees, schools, and churches.