The Borrowed Coat
Written by Studio AM.
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When Reza arrived at the interview, the receptionist glanced at his coat and her face softened into recognition. "That's a Dawson coat," she said. "My father wore one for thirty years." Reza only smiled and thanked her, because the truth was complicated.
The coat was not his. He had borrowed it that morning from a man at the shelter who had insisted, pressing it into his arms, saying a person walks taller in good wool. Reza had nearly refused.
Now, sitting in the warm lobby, he understood the gift was never about the wool at all. It was permission to be seen as someone worth a chance. He resolved that whatever came of the interview, the coat would go back that night, and one day, somehow, he would pass the same kindness forward.
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Questions
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Question 1 of 4
What makes the coat's story more complicated than the receptionist realizes?
The answer is B: It is a recent loan from someone at the shelter
The receptionist recognizes the brand and remembers her father. She does not know the coat was lent to Reza that morning by a man at the shelter.
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Question 2 of 4
What does Reza realize the gift truly was?
The answer is C: Permission to be seen as deserving of a chance
He understands it was 'permission to be seen as someone worth a chance,' not about the wool.
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Question 3 of 4
Here, 'resolved' most nearly means
The answer is B: firmly decided
Reza 'resolved' that the coat would go back and he would pay the kindness forward, meaning he made a firm decision.
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Question 4 of 4
According to the story, what did the man at the shelter say when he gave Reza the coat?
The answer is A: A person walks taller in good wool
The man pressed the coat into Reza's arms, "saying a person walks taller in good wool," words Reza later understands were about dignity, not warmth. The thirty years belong to the receptionist's father, not to the shelter man.
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