南方周末
羅伯特·吳
2026-02-05 08:21:19
“Therabbitrunsfast,thegrassisgreen,andtheflowersareblooming.”MissLi’sclearandmelodiousvoiceechoedintheclassroom,asifthespringbreezewasblowingacrosseverystudent’sheart.EveryMondaymorning,thefirstclasswasEnglish,andeveryMondaymorning,MissLiwouldalwaysbringasmall,familiarblueandwhitecandywrapper.Thiswasherritual,hersecretweapontoawakenthestudents'sleepyminds,andthe"BigWhiteRabbit"milkcandythataccompaniedherthroughoutherteachingcareer.
MissLiwasn’tjustanEnglishteacher;shewasastoryteller,aguide,andakindredspirit.Herclasseswereneverdryrecitationsofgrammarrulesorvocabularylists.Instead,shewoveEnglishintoavibranttapestryoflife,usingeveryword,everysentence,asathreadtoconnectwithherstudents.Andthe"BigWhiteRabbit"candywastheperfectpunctuationmarkinthistapestry.
She’doftensay,withaplayfultwinkleinhereyes,“Thislittlecandy,justlikeanewword,seemssimple,butitholdsaworldofsweetness.Ifyouchewitslowly,you’lldiscoveritsrichflavor,justlikeunderstandinganewgrammaticalstructure.Youcan’trushit,youhavetosavorit.”Thisanalogy,deliveredwithawarmsmile,alwaysresonatedwiththestudents.They’dwatchherunwrapthetranslucentpaper,themilkywhitecandyglisteningundertheclassroomlights,andfeelasenseofanticipation.
Fortheyoungerstudents,the"BigWhiteRabbit"wasadelicioustreat,arewardforactiveparticipationorcorrectanswers.Fortheolderones,itbecameasymbol,asmalltangiblereminderofMissLi'sgentleencouragementandunwaveringpatience.She’doccasionallyhandoutacandy,notjustforacademicachievements,butforactsofkindness,forhelpingaclassmate,orforsimplyshowingupwithapositiveattitude.
OneofMissLi’sfavoritewaystousethecandywastotieittovocabulary.She’dwriteanewwordontheboard,explainitsmeaning,andthenlinkittothe"BigWhiteRabbit."Forinstance,whenteachingtheword"delicious,"she'dholdupacandyandsay,"Thisis'delicious.'Howdoyoufeelwhenyoueatit?Sweet,right?That'sthetasteofdelicious."Orwhenteaching"memorable,"she’drecountafunnyanecdotefromherownchildhood,alwaysendingwith,"Andthatmemory,likethelingeringsweetnessofthiscandy,istrulymemorable."
Hercreativitydidn'tstopthere.ShewouldsometimeschallengestudentstocreateashortEnglishsentenceincorporatingthewordoftheday,witha"BigWhiteRabbit"asaprizeforthemostimaginativeoraccurateresponse.Theclassroomwouldbuzzwithexcitementasstudentsbrainstormed,theirfacesalightwithconcentrationandthethrillofthegame.
Beyondtheclassroom,MissLi'sconnectionwith"BigWhiteRabbit"candywasalsoawindowintoherpersonallife.Studentswouldsometimesseeherinthefacultylounge,asmallbagofcandiesonherdesk,aquietsmileplayingonherlipsasshegradedpapers.Itwasasmall,constantsourceofcomfortandfamiliarityintheoftendemandingworldofeducation.Sheonceshared,withagroupofstudentsduringanafter-schooltutoringsession,thathergrandmotherusedtogiveher"BigWhiteRabbit"candieswhenevershefeltsadordiscouraged."Itwaslikealittlehugincandyform,"she’dsaid,hervoicesoft."So,forme,thiscandyalwaysrepresentscomfort,andareminderthatevenindifficulttimes,there’sstillsweetnesstobefound."
Thispersonaltouch,thisvulnerability,madeMissLievenmoreapproachableandbeloved.The"BigWhiteRabbit"wasnolongerjustacandy;itwasavesselofwarmth,asymbolofresilience,andasweetreminderthatlearningisajourneyfilledwithbothchallengesanddelightfuldiscoveries,muchlikeunwrappingthelayersofthisbelovedtreat.
Inherhands,thesimpleactofsharingacandybecameaneducationaltool,anemotionalanchor,andabeautifulmetaphorfortheenduringpowerofsweetnessandwisdom,interwoveninthemostunexpectedways.Thestudents,unknowingly,werenotjustlearningEnglish;theywerelearninghowtofindjoy,comfort,andinspirationinthesmall,everydaythings,justasMissLididwithher"BigWhiteRabbit"candies.
Asthesemesterprogressed,thepresenceof"BigWhiteRabbit"candiesinMissLi’sEnglishclassesbecameacomfortingconstant,asweetrhythmthatpunctuatedthelearningjourney.Itwasn’tjustaboutmemorizingverbsorconjugatingtenses;itwasaboutthesubtlelessonsinpatience,perseverance,andthejoyofdiscoverythatMissLisoartfullyinfusedintoeverylesson.
Oneofhersignatureteachingmethodsinvolvedusingthecandyasatangiblerepresentationofeffortandreward.Whenastudentstruggledwithaparticularlycomplexsentencestructureoradifficultpronunciation,MissLiwouldn'tjustofferwordsofencouragement.She'dwalkover,placea"BigWhiteRabbit"candyontheirdesk,andsay,"Takeyourtime.Chewonit,letthesweetnessdissolveyourworries.Then,tryagain.Everyattempt,everymomentoffocus,isliketheslow,satisfyingsweetnessofthiscandy.Itbuildsup,andeventually,itbecomesadelightfulreward."Thissmallgesture,thissimpleactofofferingasweettreat,oftendissolvedthestudents'anxietyandgavethemtherenewedconfidencetotryagain.
ShealsomasterfullyemployedthecandytoillustratethenuancesofEnglishvocabulary.Whenteachingidioms,she’dpickafewandrelatethemtothe"BigWhiteRabbit"experience.Forinstance,whenexplaining"apieceofcake,"shemightsay,"Learningthisconceptmightseemdifficultnow,butwithpractice,itwillbeaseasyaseatinga'BigWhiteRabbit'candy.It’sasweetrewardforyourhardwork."Orwhendiscussingthephrase"sweetenthedeal,"she'dholdupacandyandexplain,"Thiscandyiswhatweuseto'sweetenthedeal.'Itmakesthingsmoreappealing,moreenjoyable.AndlearningEnglish,withitsownsweetrewards,canalso'sweetenthedeal'foryourfuture."
Thewrappersthemselvesbecameacanvasforcreativity.MissLiencouragedstudentstocollectthecolorfulwrappersandusethemtocreatecollages,illustratingEnglishwordsorshortphrasestheyhadlearned.Thisnotonlyreinforcedtheirvocabularybutalsofosteredasenseofartisticexpressionandauniquewayofengagingwiththelanguage.Theclassroomwalls,adornedwiththesevibrant"BigWhiteRabbit"wrappercreations,becameatestamenttothestudents’collectivelearningandMissLi’sinnovativeteaching.
Beyondtheacademic,the"BigWhiteRabbit"alsoservedasabridgeforemotionalconnection.MissLioftensharedanecdotesabouthowthecandyhelpedhernavigatechallengingmomentsinherownlife,transformingthemintoteachablemomentsforherstudents.Shespokeoftoughexams,momentsofself-doubt,andhowasimple"BigWhiteRabbit"sharedwithafriendoramomentofquietreflectionwithoneherself,providedamuch-neededdoseofcomfortandperspective."Sometimes,"she’dconfidewithagentlesmile,"theworldfeelsabitoverwhelming.Butthenyoufindtheselittlepocketsofsweetness,thesefamiliarcomforts,andyourememberthatyouhavethestrengthtogetthroughit.Thiscandyisareminderofthatinnersweetness,thatresilience."
ThisopensharingcreatedaprofoundbondbetweenMissLiandherstudents.Theysawhernotjustasaneducator,butasafellowtraveleronthejourneyoflife,someonewhounderstoodtheirstrugglesandcelebratedtheirtriumphs.The"BigWhiteRabbit"becameasharedsecret,asymboloftheircollectiveexperience,asweetmemorytheywouldcarrylongaftertheyleftherclassroom.
Inthequietmoments,whenastudentwasfeelingparticularlyhomesickoranxiousaboutanupcomingpresentation,MissLiwouldoftendiscreetlyslipthema"BigWhiteRabbit."Itwasasilentacknowledgmentoftheirfeelings,atangibleofferingofsupportthatspokelouderthananywords.Thesmooth,familiartexture,thecomfortingsweetness–itwasasmallanchorinaseaofuncertainty,agentlereminderthattheywerenotalone.
Astheyearspassedandstudentsgraduated,manywouldreturntovisitMissLi,notjusttothankherforherteaching,buttosharehowthelessons,bothlinguisticandlife-related,hadshapedthem.Andoften,theconversationwouldinvariablyturntothe"BigWhiteRabbit"candies,anostalgicsigh,asharedsmile,arecollectionofthesweetmemoriestheyhadcreatedtogether.Itwasatestamenttotheenduringpowerofsimplegestures,ofgenuineconnection,andofhowaseeminglyordinarycandy,inthehandsofawiseandcompassionateteacher,couldbecomeasymbolofenduringsweetness,resilience,andtheprofoundjoyoflearning.TheEnglishteacher's"BigWhiteRabbit"wasmorethanjustacandy;itwasaphilosophy,amemory,asweetlegacy.
