It's always been a dream for Alex to take a trip with her mother, but it was a death in the family that1made them both realize how precious life really is.

    “After losing my grandma, I2that neither I nor my mum will3be here, and that I can't4the right time to come,” the 27-year-old girl told The Huffington post.

    “After a week of5, my amazing mum and I are off to travel around the United States. We will be travelling from New York to Los Angeles interviewing6who are changing the world for the better and7the dream I had for a very long time: to travel together with my mother. I have taken a month off work and we are on our way.8are waiting!” Alex said.

    So in August，Alex and her 63-year-old retired mother，Halina, traveled to the United States for a three-week 9that took them from coast to coast.

    Alex is the10of Looking For Heroes, a social media project, in which she photographs many of the interesting people she meets with,11unique tidbits (花边新闻) of their life stories at the same time. The 12mother and daughter traveled across the nation, visiting cities13Knoxville, Tennessee, New York City, Los Angeles and Washington. Along the way they took photos 14 famous backdrops (背景) in each city, making some15memories.

    Meanwhile, Alex16much from her mother. Her mother often said “My  17to young people would be to learn new things, and what you have learned will be your biggest 18in life. With age you stop19about things that don't matter. With your priorities (优先) changing, 20and health become the most important.

    South Korean artist Young-Sung Kim has a very special talent, he can paint photographs. That may sound like kind of exaggeration (夸张).

    Most of Kim's paintings describe small1 interacting with man-made objects. The artist admits that he has been greatly 2 by insects and reptiles (爬行动物) since he was a young boy, keeping them in his room and 3 them. From that days on, he 4 to become a painter.

    “It wasn't 5 to paint their structure and color well. It was much harder than I had expected. I promised myself I would train myself at art school 6I could paint them perfectly,” the 7told Yonhap News Agency.

    8 his parents didn't approve of his decision to focus his studies on art9 that he would not be able to land a good job. In high-school, their 10 only made Kim rebel (叛逆) even more. After two years of this, his family finally 11 and allowed him to follow his dream.

    In the end, Kim 12his parents that they made the13 decision. Not only does he get to earn a living doing what he14most, but he became one of the world's most highly-regarded15painters, earning between $10,000 and $130,000 per artwork.

    Youn-Sung Kim paints for more than 12 hours a day16on weekends. Despite the17 realism of his paintings, Young-Sung Kim never completely 18with his work. He 19 his artworks on a 100-pomt scale, and none of his dozens of paintings have ever scored above 90 points. Kim hopes to 20 himself and get as close to that 100-point mark as possible.

    When I was 16, I wrote a list of things I wanted to do in my lifetime. Some things were easy, some difficult and some almost 1. One of the things on the list was to do a 2.

    Two years ago I spent three months travelling with a friend and it was a great experience. One of the most 3 things we saw was Iguassu Falls. The day after we visited the waterfalls we were 4 in a hotel in Brazil, playing games when my friend 5 noticed an advertisement on the wall 6 “Skydive over Iguassu Falls today!”. I realized it was time to realize my 7. Today would be the day that we would jump out of a(n) 8.

    That afternoon we were 9 and taken to the Skydive Centre. We put on our harnesses（跳伞装备）and helmets, were given some 10 and then took off into the air. My heart started to beat very fast and I felt very 11.

    Luckily, I was 12 to an instructor so I didn't have to worry about anything; I just had to 13 myself. He asked me if I was ready to fall from the plane but 14 I had enough time to 15, we fell to the ground at 400 km an hour! After about 40 seconds of 16, the parachute opened and everything slowed down. We 17 peacefully towards the earth, leaving the 18 behind us.

    This was definitely one of the scariest but most exciting 19 of my life. I would do another skydive if I had the20. I think that everyone should do something that scares them once in a while！

    I received an e-mail from a good friend last week. Her letter opened with the usual greetings, but then turned sour as she began to 1the pain in her heart.

    My friend doesn't have a good relationship with her parents.2she is an 18-year-old high school student, her parents,3her father, are still trying to control her life.

"I admit I haven't4the level of excellence they expect. As long as I let them down, they always scold(责骂) me." she wrote, adding, "They're never satisfied with what I do. Every time I see them, my confidence gets 5. I feel bitter and annoyed. Sometimes I don't even want to stay with them."

    I understand my friend's6. I know what it's like to have people refuse my 7 and insist I do what they 8 . I know I have to give her a 9. Still, I have to be honest, and try to give her useful 10 .

    I think she needs to find it in herself to 11 her parents. I don't think many of us truly12the power of forgiveness. 13forgiving, we get mad, and that14 is often shown in our words and actions. We want those who have hurt us to be15in some way.

    I still remember something that happened to me in high school. A friend said something 16 about me, and I didn't say a word to her for months. Years later I 17that although my actions seemed18at the time, my hurt feelings were not worth losing a good friend. I regret that I did not forgive her.

    The power of forgiveness is truly 19. Learn to forgive, and when you do so you'll find yourself feeling better. And you can also set yourself 20to experience peace and love.

    I always come across random acts of kindness in my life. Many years ago, I was 1Costa Rica when I found myself in an 2situation: my credit cards and bank cards went out of 3 abroad, and I only had $5 to my 4.

    I had no way to get money. I didn't know anybody in this country. I only knew basic Spanish, and besides the cash the only 5I had was a return ticket to my country in almost two 6. Back then, there was no such thing as mobile phones, and7email was very limited. To find help, I decided to go to the countryside. With the only coins I had, I 8the bus terminal(终点站)and found a village, which 9almost the exact amount. About 4 hours later, I arrived at Santa Rosa Abajo at midnight.

    I knocked door to door,10in my very poor Spanish that I was a foreigner travelling in Costa Rica with no money but I 11to stay here for over ten days. I begged them for a 12－such as cooking , cleaning and looking after their kids, anything like that. Everybody 13, “oh my, but so poor are we that we have no 14 food or space. Maybe you can try the next 15.” And they'd point me to another house.

    16, I arrived at a Chinese restaurant. The owner of the restaurant was very 17. She gave me food and called the Red Cross to come to 18me. With the help of the Red Cross, I spent my19days in Costa Rica.

    This is one of the best trips I've ever had, because I realized that when you're in a position to be able to 20, it actually makes you feel happy.

Go for the Gold

    Diana Golden was 12 years old when she found she had bone cancer. Doctors recommended 1 her right leg above the knee.

    2 Diana heard the news, she asked the first question that came into her mind, "Will I still be able to 3?"

    "When the doctors said yes," she later said, "I thought it wouldn't be too 4."

    That was Diana's 5 to life. Losing a leg would cause most children to lose 6, but Diana refused to think about the 7 side. "Losing a leg?" she'd say. "It's nothing. A body part."

    Most of all, Diana didn't want to let cancer stop her from doing what she loved—skiing. She had been on ski since five. After the operation, Diana worked hard to get back to the 8. "I always skied, and I intended to keep on skiing. There was never any question in my mind about that," she 9. Seven months after losing her leg, Diana met her 10. She was back out on the slopes (斜坡).

    Skiing wasn't quite the same with just one leg, but Diana made the best of it. She 11 to go faster on one leg than most people could go on two. When she was just 17, she became a member of the U.S. Disabled Ski Team.

    After high school, Diana went on to Dartmouth College. There she saw how top two-legged skiers trained. 12 not to be left behind, Diana began training with the Dartmouth team. When they ran up and down the steps of the football stadium, she went up and down the steps too—by 13. "I had to 14," she later explained. "I was an athlete. I had one leg, which meant I had to do it 15."

    Her constant efforts finally paid off. In 1987, Diana placed 10th in a race 16 some of the best nondisabled skiers in the country. And in 1988, the magazine Ski Racing selected her "Skier of the Year", breaking the 17 of electing able-bodied World Cup athletes.

    As a result of her 18 and determination, Diana has changed the way the world looks at19 athletes. People have begun to see them as strong and competent. "Everyone has some kind of 'disability'," Diana says, "It's what we do with our abilities that 20."