I was now five, and still I showed no much interest in things except with my toes（脚趾）. I could not look after myself,   35  my father took care of me. I used to lie on my back all the time in the kitchen. I was   36 , imprisoned（监禁） in a world of my own, unable to communicate with others.
Then, suddenly, it happened on the afternoon of a cold December day. All the family were gathered round the big kitchen fire. Mona and Paddy were drawing funny animals, using a bright piece of yellow chalk. It was the chalk that   37  me so much. I had never seen anything like it before.
Suddenly, I wanted to do what my sister was doing. Then without thinking or knowing exactly what I was doing, I   38  out and took the chalk out of my sister’s hand, with my left foot. It is a puzzle（迷惑）to many people as well as to   39 . I held the chalk tightly between my toes and made a wild scribble（乱涂）with it on the board. Next moment I stopped, not knowing what to do with the chalk next, hardly knowing how it   40  there. Then I looked up and realized that everyone was looking at me   41 . My mother came in. Her eyes looked from my face down to my   42 , then she took another piece of chalk from Mona, and drew the single letter “A” on the floor in front of me. “Copy that, Christy.” She said. I tried to do the same action, but I   43 . “Try again, Chris.” she whispered in my ear. I tried another two more times. I drew one side of the letter, then the other. It looked ugly, but I   44  to make it finally. I had done it! True! I couldn’t speak with my mouth, but now I would speak through something more   45  than spoken words. That one letter was my   46  to a new world, my key to mental freedom.