Across the street from where we live, there stands a big hospital. To earn some money, we rented the rooms upstairs to patients. One evening, there was a(n) 1 at the door. I opened it and saw a short old man who was hardly 2 than my eight-year-old son. But the worst thing was his face—it was 3 ugly. He told me he'd been 4 a room since that noon but no one seemed to have one. For a moment I hesitated, not 5 to rent him a room, but his next words convinced me. He said,“I could 6 on this chair. My bus leaves early in the morning." I told him we would find him a 7.

    It wasn't a long time before I found that this old man had a 8 heart in that tiny body. He fished for a living to 9 his daughter, his daughter's children, and her disabled husband. He didn't tell it by way of complaint. Instead, he was 10 that no pain was caused by his disease and that he still had strength to keep going. At 11, we put a camp cot(吊床) in my children's room for him.12 he left the next morning, he asked, “Could I please come back and 13 when I see the doctor next time? Grown-ups are bothered by my 14, but children don't seem to 15. ”I told him he was welcome to come again.

    On his next trip, he brought a big fish and a bag of the largest oysters（牡蛎）I had ever seen. Other times we received 16 in the mail. There were oysters, fish or some fresh vegetables. 17 how little money he had and that he must walk three miles to 18 these made these gifts much more precious. And from him we 19 what it was to accept the bad without complaint and the good 20gratitude.

    It's hard being an astronaut's son. I mean, everybody expects you to be special or 1. But I'm just a common student, and I' m common in all kinds of ball games, too.

    I often wonder 2 my father ever had a son like me. He' s so special and so good at 3. So I used to dream about doing something special to make him 4 me.

    In one class, my teacher 5 a Father's Day essay contest to us. He also told us the winners' essays would 6 in front of all the parents and students. After school I walked home, 7 my father, who I would write about in my essay.

    I still remember he stayed by my side in the 8 when I was a little kid and had an awful dream. He surprised me 9 a new puppy dog at my eighth birthday party. He sat and tried to explain the meaning of life to me when Grandpa Bob died. To me, he wasn't a world-famous astronaut, just my dad.

    I wrote about all these 10 in my essay. One of our classmates said, "I believe you'll win the contest, David. You're the only one in our school who 11 write about being the son of an astronaut. "I shrugged(耸肩). I hadn' t shown anyone the essay, but now I 12hoped I wouldn't win. I didn't want to win just because my father was an astronaut.

    I won the second prize. 13 I finished reading my essay, the whole school applauded(鼓掌). I saw my father blowing his nose. I went back to my seat. Dad nodded to 14, cleared his throat, and put his hand on my shoulder. "Son, this is the most 15 moment of my life," he said. It was the proudest moment of my life, too. Maybe I'll never be a great hero or win a Nobel Prize, but just then, it was enough just to be my father' s son.

The Best Nutrition of Life

    A little boy always thought himself unfortunate because of his disability. He 1 played with his classmates. When the teacher asked him to answer questions, he always 2 his head without a word.

    One spring, the boy's father asked his children 3 to plant a young tree. “Whose tree grows best, I will buy him or her a favorite gift.” The boy wanted to have a try. But seeing his brothers and sisters watering the trees 4, anyhow, he 5 an idea: he hoped his tree would 6 soon. After watering it once, he never 7 it.

    A few days later, when he 8 his tree again, he was 9 to find it grew some fresh leaves 10 that compared with other trees, his appeared 11. His father bought him his favorite 12 and said that from the tree he planted, he would become an outstanding botanist（植物学家）.

    From then on, the little boy slowly became 13. One night, enjoying the bright moon-light, he went to see the tree. When he came to the courtyard quietly, he found his 14 was watering his tree with a ladle（长柄构）. 15 he understood: his father had been 16 fertilizing his small tree! He returned to his room, tears 17 in his eyes.

    Decades passed. The little boy didn't become a 18 as expected, but he was 19 President of the Untied States. His name was Franklin Roosevelt.

    20 is the best nutrition of life. Even it means a ladle of water, a thin and small tree can grow into a towering tree.

    Yesterday evening I was watching the evening news on television. The news was about a1for scientific discoveries. The announcer, whose name was Ralph Story,2something that caught my 3. "All great discoveries," he said, "are made by people between the age of twenty-five and thirty." Being a little over thirty myself, I wanted to 4with him. Nobody wants to think that he is past the age of making any 5. The next day I went to the public library, spending several hours looking up the 6 of famous people and their discoveries. Ralph was right.

    First I looked at some of the 7discoveries. One of the earliest, the famous experiment that8that bodies of different weight 9at the same speed, was made by Galileo(伽利略) when he was 26. Madam Curie(居里夫人) started her research that led to a Nobel Prize when she was 28. Einstein(爱因斯坦) was 26 when he10his world-changing theory of relativity. Well, 11of that. Yet I wondered if those "best years" were true in other 12.

    Then how about 13? Surely it needed the wisdom of age to make a good leader. Perhaps it 14, but look when these people 15their careers. Winston Churchill(丘吉尔) was elected to the House of Commons at the age of 26. Abraham Lincoln(林肯) 16the life of a country lawyer and was elected to the government at what age? Twenty-six.

    But why don't best years come after thirty? After thirty, I 17most people do not want to take risks or try new ways in their lives. Then I thought of those famous people18Shakespeare and Picasso. The former one was writing wonderful 19at the late age of fifty, 20the latter was still trying new ways of painting when he was ninety! Perhaps there is still hope for me.

    I still remember the first day of school our professor introduced a little old lady named Rose to us. I was curious about what might have 1  her to be taking on this challenge at her age. "I always 2 having a college education and now I'm getting one!" she told me. I like listening to this "time machine" as she 3 her wisdom and experience with me.

    At the end of the term, we 4 Rose to make a speech to our football team. As she began to deliver her 5 speech, she dropped her note card on the 6 . A little embarrassed, she simply said, "I'm sorry. This whiskey is 7 me! I'll never get my speech back in order so let me just tell you what I know." As we laughed, she 8 her throat and began, "We do not stop 9 because we are old; we grow old because we stop playing. There are some secrets to staying  10 , being happy, and achieving success. You have to laugh and find 11 every day. Have a dream. When you 12your dreams, you die. We have so many people walking around who are 13 and don't even know it! There is a huge 14  between growing older and growing up.  15 you are nineteen years old and lie in bed for one full year and don't do one 16 thing, you will turn twenty years old. That doesn't 17 any talent or ability. The elderly usually don't have18 for what they did, but rather for things they did not do."

    One week after graduation, Rose 19 peacefully in her sleep. We will remember the wonderful woman who taught us by example that it's never too late to be all we can20 be.

    It started four years ago. My wife would see a 1 man near where she worked. It was the week before Christmas and she said she wanted to purchase a new coat for him because his coat was 2. We don't have a lot of 3. We are really a step away from being homeless in rags most months but we try to 4 when we can.

    We talked and found a way to get some money together to 5 him a coat. I 6 that since we were giving a coat to him, we should look at what else he might 7. We decided to fill a 8 with some useful 9 things—a toothbrush, soap, clothes, a hat, gloves and some food. A small gift and Christmas card was put in it as well.

    We haven't had money to exchange 10 for birthdays or Christmas for many years, too. It feels wonderful to have someone 11 you at Christmas but I've always been a little 12 when friends ask "What did you get for Christmas?" It always makes my wife feel bad that she can't 13 to give me anything and I feel the same. So I would 14 and say she bought me this thing or that. But that year we could say we 15 something to others instead and that's 16 what happened.

    People asked and we said what we did. They also wanted to help the following 17 and we made ten more backpacks the following Christmas, and this year we really 18 the gifts.

    I still can't afford to buy my wife some gifts to 19 on Christmas day, but the 20 we feel makes up for it ten times!