"Are you too stupid to do anything right?"These words-said by a woman to a little boy who was obviously her son-were spoken __36__ he had walked away from her. The boy returned, his eyes downcast.

Not a __37__ moment, perhaps. __38__ small moments sometimes last a very long time. And a few words-though they mean __39__ at the time to the people who say them-can have great __40__.

I recently heard a story from a man named Malcolm Dalkoff. For the last 24 years he has been a professional __41__. Here is what he told me: