My father was a highly educated, intelligent gentleman. He could debate or discuss for hours on almost any topic and hold your 1 in the process. I thought there was nothing he wasn't 2 to do.

    A few days before my younger brother's 7th birthday, Dad planned to assemble（装配）a new  3 as a special birthday surprise. After nearly an hour of  4 the instructions, Dad was still unable to 5 the new bike together. Later he 6 the paper of instructions, 7 up his tool box, and decided to take the bike back to the local toy store and pay extra 8 to have it correctly assembled there. 9 an idea came to him, as he called out to Lovett, the quiet little man who cut our grassland.

    “Lovett, have you ever assembled a boy's bicycle?”

    As Lovett walked towards the bike, Dad handed him the 10 . Lovett handed it back to him, saying, “No, thanks. I can't read. When you can't read, you have to 11 .” Less than 15 minutes later, the new bicycle was 12  assembled, with no 13  parts remaining. Dad shook Lovett's hand, patted him on the back, thanked him, and hid the bike.

    On the night after my brother received his shiny new gift, Dad announced at the family dinner table what had happened several days earlier. He took great 14  in telling it over and over again — he used it as an example of thinking.

    He did not refer to illiteracy（文盲）, but strongly taught us to use our  15  . The joke was on my father,  16  he was able to turn it into a learning tool, and I liked him even more after that incident. I also gained a new  17  for Lovett. To me he had  18  been the old yard man who didn't 19  much, but after that day, he seemed to smile 20  , even walk taller. It's amazing what a real nod of approval can do to lift people up.

    One day, while I was walking to work, I decided to bring some flowers that I had picked from my garden that morning. On the way, I 1 a stranger and presented the bunch to him with a smile card. 2 by the sense of joy I felt from giving flowers to another person, and may be 3 his day, I wanted to do it again.

    When I got to my office, I had the 4 of anonymously(匿名地) leaving flowers around the workplace. The impersonal(无人情味的) 5 of the building where I work makes me 6 . It just feels a little boring sometimes, 7 it's a nice building with great light. I 8 lots of people might feel the same way, so why not put a little 9 there, and throw in an inspirational10 while I'm at it? After all, who doesn't like flowers?

    So, for the past month, I've been 11 flowers in a little cup on the sink in the bathroom.

    Each week, I 12 the flowers and the quote. It always feels 13 for me to read quotes like Henry David Thoreau's “If one advances 14 in the direction of his dreams, he will meet with a success unexpected in common hours.” and Gandhi's “The fragrance(香味) always 15 on the hand that gives the rose.” If anything, I figured, it at least makes me 16 each time I visit the bathroom.

    Then today, when I walked in, I noticed 17 flowers in the cup, and a quote that someone else had written! It 18 , “Be the change you wish to see in the world.”—Gandhi. This little act 19 me that, at the end of the day, we're all just people with hearts 20 the various roles and different hats we may wear in the workplace.

    I did a little dance and I am smiling wide for the rest of the day!

    John Clark was a postman. He was fond of dogs. However, when he was delivering（投递）letters, he found that 1dogs were his friends. One particular dog called2, who lived at No.108 Turner Road, was one of John's 3. Whenever John came near his 4house, Spot would lie in and 5out on John, barking（吠叫）and trying to 6his ankles.

    After a heavy snow,7was freezing that morning. The road was covered with8. John was afraid of 9 down, so he10his bike and walked with11steps. Unfortunately, John slipped on a patch of ice, which was opposite to No.108 Turner Road. Spot12this as John together with his bike made such a big noise.Spot jumped onto John's 13and tried to bite his neck.Quick as a flash, John,14hands were full of letters, bit15on the leg.

    John Clark said later, it was the 16thing I could do.I don't approve of（赞成）17to animals, but that dog18 had it coming. Since that day I've had no 19at No.108.Spot always hides round the 20of the house when he hears me coming.

    It happened when I was in Grade 4. My teacher Ms. Orange asked us to bring cards, candy and other 1to class. She wanted us to celebrate Thanksgiving Day as a class. I 2this activity and thought it would be fun, 3I asked my mom to help me make some nice cookies. I 4bought some Thanksgiving cards. I couldn't wait to give them to my classmates.

    When the day finally5, things went very well. People gave each other cards and candy. Everyone seemed very6. I gave out all of the things I took to school to my classmates. However, I received7. I was surprised at what was happening. Ms. Orange then asked us to8 what we received and say whom it came9. When my name was called, I couldn't hold back my10because I didn't get anything from anyone. I was 11 by the people who said that they were my 12.

    It was surely a 13Thanksgiving Day for me. I was angry. But I didn't want to 14 my classmates. I kept being kind to them and 15hard. And what I did paid off. I became one of the 16 students in my class. My teachers and classmates were proud of me. Now I have many good friends by my side. The_17from them alone will always be the best gift I will value forever. I 18that the best gifts in life don't come from stores. It's the things that we value in our 19that count. I'm glad that I made the right decision and 20 my classmates' friendship in the end.

    I was walking around in a Big Bazar store doing a shopping, when I saw a cashier talking to a boy who didn't have enough money to buy what he wanted. The little boy was still holding the doll 1 his hand. At that time, I walked toward him and I asked him who he 2 to give this doll to. “It's the doll 3 my sister loved most. I wanted to 4 her for her Birthday.” His eyes were so sad while saying this.

    “My Sister has gone to be with God. Daddy says that Mommy is going to see God very soon too, so I thought that she could 5 the doll with her to give it to my sister.” My heart 6 stopped. Then he showed me a very nice 7 of him. He then told me “I want mommy to take my picture with her so my sister won't 8 me, I love my mommy 9 I wish she doesn't have to leave me.”

    I quickly 10 for my wallet and said to the boy. “Suppose we 11 again, just in case you do have enough money 12 the doll?” I added some of my money to his, without him seeing and we started to count it.

    The little boy said, “God heard my 13 last night. Thank God for giving me enough 14 to buy it.”

    Then I remembered two days before a local 15 reported an 16 in which a woman and a little girl were badly 17.The little girl died right away, and the mother was left in a 18 state. Was this the family of the little boy?

    Two days 19 , I read in the newspaper that the woman had passed away.I couldn't stop myself from going to the 20 . Teary-eyed, I felt that my life had been changed forever.

    Cruz Gent, 11, and Anthony Skopick, 10, couldn't agree. Were the 1 out on the ice ducks or geese? There was only one way to find out. So on a 2 January evening last year, the two friends 3 onto the frozen pond near their homes to get a better 4.

    First they threw a rock onto the ice to test it. Then they stepped on it. Convinced the ice would 5 their weight, Anthony took a few steps, then... FOOMP. He crashed through the 6 frozen surface. Instantly Cruz rushed to help his 7 friend. FOOMP — the pond swallowed him too.

    Cruz 8 to lift himself out of the icy water and onto a more solid section. He then 9 worked his way toward Anthony. But the ice didn't hold, and he fell in again. This time, he couldn't get out.

    The boys were up to their necks in the cold water and quickly 10 feeling in their arms and legs. Any chance of their freeing themselves was slipping away. Cruz was sure he was going to 11.

    Anthony's older sister had seen the boys fall through the ice and 12 screaming for help. John Lavin, a 13 driving nearby on his way to the grocery store, heard her. He quickly 14. Seeing the boys, he grabbed a nearby buoy (浮标), 15 his shoes, and ran into the icy water, making his way through the ice with his free fist. Finally, Lavin got close to Cruz and Anthony and pulled them back to   16. They were taken to the hospital, where 17 discovered that their five-minute stay in the water had18 their body temperature nearly ten degrees.19, the boys have fully recovered, but they are still impressed by their 20 neighbor." Just think," says Cruz, "if he hadn't been there, I could have died."