Reading Skills for Today's Adults

Lul is trying to learn English. She takes classes and practices the language by talking with her husband in English. Lul makes her husband lunch every morning.  He takes it with him to work. One morning Lul asked him what he wanted for lunch. He said, “I would like an apple and a sandwich.”

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Lul thought an apple sandwich was an odd request but reasoned that people in the United States maybe liked to eat apple sandwiches. So, she took a slice of bread and put mayonnaise on it. Then she cut the apple into very thin slices and put them on the bread.  

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Next she put another slice of bread on top of the apple slices. She packed the sandwich in a bag and handed it to her husband. “I hope you like it,” she said. “Have a good day.”

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At noon Lul’s husband had lunch with the other workers.They asked him what he had for lunch. He said, “I have a sandwich.” Then he took a bite and exclaimed, “An apple sandwich!”

They replied, “We’ve never heard of an apple sandwich.”

Lul’s husband said, “Neither had I—until today.”