Henry Ford was born on a farm on July 30th, 1863. The farm was near the city of Detroit.

    Henry was always interested in machines. He enjoyed fixing clocks.And he helped repair farm equipment. When Henry was sixteen years old, he left the family farm and went to Detroit to learn more about machines. Henry used what he learned from work to develop engines. In 1903, he was ready to start building cars for the public. On July 15th, 1903, a man named Doctor Pfenning bought the first car from the Ford Motor Company.

    The sale to Doctor Pfenning was the beginning of a huge number of requests for Ford cars.By the end of March, 1904, almost 600 Ford cars had been sold. At the start of 1905, the Ford Motor Company was producing 25 cars each day.

    Henry Ford was sure the future of the automobile industry was in a low-priced car for the general public. He said then, and many times after,“I want to make a car that anybody can buy.”

    In 1907, Henry Ford said: "I will build a motor car for the great mass of people. 1t will be large enough for the family, but small enough for one person to operate and care for. It will be built of the best materials. It will be built by the best men to be employed. And it will be built with the simplest plans that modern engineering can produce. It will be so low in price that no man making good money will be unable to own one.”

    Have your parents ever inspected your room to see if you cleaned it properly? Imagine having your entire houses, garage, and yard inspected at any time -- with no warning. Inspections were a regular part of lighthouse (灯塔) living, and a keeper's reputation depended on results. A few times each year, an inspector arrived to look over the entire light station. The inspections were supposed to be a surprise, but keeper sometimes had advance notice.

    Once lighthouses had telephones, keepers would call each other to warn that the inspector was approaching. After boats began flying special flags noting the inspector aboard, the keeper's family made it a game to see who could notice the boat first. As soon as someone spotted the boat, everyone would do last-minute tidying and change into fancy clothes. The keeper then scurried to put on his dress uniform and cap. Children of keepers remember inspectors wearing white gloves to run their fingers over door frames and windowsills looking for dust.

    Despite the serious nature of inspections, they resulted in some funny moments. Betty Byrnes remembered when her mother did not have time to wash all the dishes before an inspection. At the time, people did not have dishwashers in their homes. In an effort to clean up quickly, Mrs. Byrnes tossed all the dishes into a big bread pan, covered them with a cloth and stuck them in the oven. If the inspector opened the oven door, it would look like bread was baking. he never did.

    One day, Glenn Furst's mother put oil on the kitchen floor just before the inspector entered their house. Like floor wax, the oil made the floors shiny and helped protect the wood. This time, though, she used a little too much oil. When the inspector extended his hand to greet Glenn's mother, he slipped on the freshly oiled surface. "He came across that floor waving his arms like a young bird attempting its first flight," Glenn late wrote. After he steadied himself, he shook Glenn's mother's hand, and the inspection continued as though nothing had happened.

    There were smiling children all the way. Clearly they knew at what time the train passed their homes and they made it their business to stand along the railway, wave to complete strangers and cheer them up as they rushed towards Penang. Often whole families stood outside their homes and waved and smiled as if those on the trains were their favorite relatives. This is the simple village people of Malaysia. I was moved.

    I had always traveled to Malaysia by plane or car, so this was the first time I was on a train. I did not particularly relish the long train journey and had brought along a dozen newspapers and magazines to read and reread. I looked about the train. There was not one familiar face. I sighed and sat down to read my 21^st Century Teens.

    It was not long before the train was across the Causeway and in Malaysia. Johore Baru was just another city like Singapore, so I was tired of looking at the crowds of people as they hurried past. As we went beyond the city, I watched the straight rows of rubber trees and miles and miles of green. Then the first village came into sight. Immediately I came alive; I decided to wave back.

From then on my journey became interesting. I threw my magazines into the waste basket and decided to join in Malaysian life. Then everything came alive. The mountains seemed to speak to me. Even the trees were smiling. I stared at everything as if I was looking at it for the first time.

    The day passed fast and I even forgot to have my lunch until I felt hungry. I looked at my watch and was surprised that it was 3:00 pm. Soon the train pulled up at Butterworth. I looked at the people all around me. They all looked beautiful. When my uncle arrived with a smile, I threw my arms around him to give him a warm hug. I had never done this before. He seemed surprised and then his weather-beaten face warmed up with a huge smile. We walked arm in arm to his car.    I looked forward to the return journey, by train.

    Many of the world's most successful people were once successful failures. Here are the stories of a few of them.

    Abraham Lincoln (1809-1865)

    Abraham Lincoln was one of America's greatest leaders, taking the country through the Civil War (from 1860 to 1865). However, his life was never easy. He started numerous businesses that failed, he went bankrupt twice, and was defeated in 26 campaigns for public office. He later said, “My great concern is not whether you have failed, but whether you are content and satisfied with your failure.”

    Vincent Van Gogh (1853-1890)

    Van Gogh is one of the most famous and influential painters in the history of Western Art. He's famous for paintings such as The Starry Night, The potato Eaters and Sunflowers. However, during his lifetime, Van Gogh sold only one painting for a very small amount of money. Despite this, he carried on painting, sometimes even going without food so he could complete his collection of over 800 known works.

Albert Einstein (1879-1955)

    Albert Einstein won the Noble Prize in Physics in 1921. However, he wasn't always considered a genius. He didn't speak until he was four, and couldn't read until he was seven. His teachers and parents thought he was slow, so he was driven from school and couldn't get into the Zurich Polytechnic School. He later famously said, “Success is failure in progress.”

    Stephen King (1947-2018)

    Stephen King is one of the best-selling authors of all time, but his first book, Carrie, was rejected by about 30 publishers. Finally, Stephen threw it into the bin, but his wife fished it out and encouraged him to resubmit it, which he did and succeeded this time!

    Christmas is a time for eating great food, giving and receiving presents, and most importantly spending time with your family watching some classic Christmas movies.

    The Grinch (2000)

    This is a Christmas must­watch and one of Jim Carrey's best performances. It was also originally a nursery tale book written by Dr Seuss. It's the story of a green monster who wants to ruin Christmas but who in the end discovers the power of love and generosity. I promise it's a great film with plenty of laughs along the way.

    Love Actually (2003)

    While this is not a personal favourite of mine, people in the UK absolutely love this film. It has many featuring actors and actresses. It might be a little difficult to follow as there are complex plots, so I recommend watching a translated version or enabling subtitles (字幕) in your native language. However, the heart­warming elements of the film make it worth watching.

    Home Alone (1990)

    This amusing masterwork is one of my favourite films of all time. It tells the story of a boy, Kevin, who is left alone in his house when his large family forgets to take him on vacation with them. While the families are away, burglars try to rob the house and Kevin must protect his home by setting traps. The trips, falls and traps will have you laughing out loud as you watch a 10­year­old boy beat two grown men.

    Miracle on 34th Street (1994)

You can't have Christmas in an English­speaking country without watching this movie. It's not funny like Home Alone or The Grinch, but it is incredibly touching. It's about a man who claims to be Santa, but nobody believes him except a lawyer and a little girl. The story­line may seem a little childish but you can enjoy it at any age.