With his leg lame（瘸的）and his teeth uneven, the boy almost thought of himself as the most unfortunate child in the world. He 1 played with his classmates, and when asked to answer questions, he always 2 his head without a word.

    One spring, his father brought home some saplings（树苗）. 3 of his children would plant a sapling and he promised, “Whoever 4 his sapling best shall get a favorite gift.” The boy certainly wanted to get his father's gift. 5 seeing his brothers and sisters watering the trees, an idea 6 him: he hoped the tree he planted would die soon. So watering it once or twice, he never 7 it.

    Several days later, when the little boy went to see his tree again, he was 8 to find it not only didn't die, but also grew so many fresh 9. Compared with those of his brothers and sisters, his appeared greener. His father kept his 10, bought the little boy one of his favorite gifts and said from the tree he planted, he would surely become an outstanding 11 when he grew up.

    From then on, the little boy slowly became 12 and confident. One night, he suddenly 13 biology teacher once said that plants  14 grow at night. Why not go to see his tree?

    When he came to the courtyard, he found his father was working near his tree! Instantly he 15 his father had been secretly 16 his small tree! He returned to his room, with tears 17 in his eyes.

    Decades passed. The little boy didn't become a botanist. 18, he became the U.S. president. His name was Franklin Roosevelt.

19 is the best nourishment（滋养品）of life. 20 it is just a bucket of water, it can make the tree of life grow well!

    I was unbelievably proud of my nine-year-old daughter, Emily. 1 to buy a mountain bike, she'd been saving her pocket money all year, as well as doing small jobs to earn extra money. By Thanksgiving, she had collected only $49. I said, “You2 have your pick from my bicycle3.”

    “Thanks, Daddy. But your bikes are so old.” She was right. All my girls' bikes were 1950s models, not the kind a kid today would4choose.

    As Christmas5 near, Emily and I went bike shopping. As we left one store, she 6 a Salvation Army（基督教慈善组织） volunteer standing next to a big pot. “Can we give something, Daddy?” she asked. “Sorry, em, I'm out of change.” I said.

    Throughout December, Emily continued to 7 hard. Then one day, she made a 8 announcement. “You know all the money I've been saving?” she said hesitantly. “I'm going to give it to the poor people.” So one cold morning before Christmas, Emily handed her total savings of $58 to a volunteer who was really very9.

    10 by Emily's selflessness, I decided to contribute11 of my old bicycles to a car dealer who was collecting used bikes for poor children. 12 I selected a shiny model from my collection, however, it seemed as if a second bike took on a glow（发光）.Should I contribute two? No, one would be enough. But I couldn't 13 the feeling that I should give a second bike. When I later 14 the bikes, the car dealer said, “You're making two kids very 15, sir. Here are your tickets. For each bicycle contributed, we're16 away one chance to win a girls' mountain bike.”

    Why wasn't I surprised when that second ticket proved to be the 17? I like to think it was God's way of 18 a little girl for a sacrifice 19 her years—while giving her dad a lesson in the20.

    When I was 14 years old, I was angry and rebellious, with 1 regard for anything my parents had to say, 2if it had nothing to do with me .Like so many3, I struggled to escape from anything that didn't 4 my picture of the world. A brilliant without need of guidance kid, I refused to accept any obvious 5 of love. In fact I got 6 at the proposal of the word "love"。

    One 7 , after an extremely difficult day, I 8 into my room, shut the door loudly and fell down onto my bed heavily. As I lay down in the privacy of my 9, my hands placed under my pillow. There was an envelope and I pulled what was inside out, which read, To 10 when you're alone."

    11 I was alone, no one would know whether I read it or not. So I opened it. It said, " Mike, I know life is 12 right now, I know you are upset and I know we don't do everything right .I also know that I love you 13 and nothing you do or say will ever change that I am here for you if you ever need to talk. If you don't, that's also 14. Just know that no matter where you go or whatever you do in your life, I will always love you and be 15 that you are my son. I'm here for you and love you that will never16 love you ,Mom."

    Every night as I went to bed, I would put my hands under my  17 and remember the 18 I felt every time I got a letter. During my teen years, the letters were the calm assurance that I still could be loved 19 my anger and rudeness. Just before I fell 20 I became grateful that my mom knew what I, an angry teenager, needed.

    The auction(拍卖)took place on a mild morning. 1 , standing in front of an expectant 2 with a sign with his pig's picture, 15-year-old Wayion Klitzman was sweating.

    Waylon called his pig "Roo". The farm boy hoped the money from Roo's 3 would help with cancer research.

    It started with a 4 .

    In August 2017, Wayion 5 9th grade and in those first weeks of school, Wayion 6his algebra teacher, Kim Katzenmeyer, for support. Their special 7 grew over the last school year. "She saw the 8 in me and we just connected that way," said Wayion.

    Then Katzenmeyer's niece was diagnosed with neuroblastoma, a rare cancer that mostly 9children. After months of watching her niece receive cancer treatments, Katzcnmcyer 10her teaching job to volunteer full time at the cancer research charity, Beat NB.

    Katzenmeyer meant a lot to Wayion and he just wanted to 11 . Then he had an 12to auction his pig to 13 money for the cancer charity. So before the auction day, Wayion sent letters to people explaining his 14 to sell his pig and donate the profits to Beat NB. The letter 15 his beloved teacher whose niece was battling cancer.

    The auction turned out to be particularly 16 . Buyers kept 17 Way Ion's pig so he could sell it over and over. Wayion had thought that, with luck, his pig would bring in 18 over $ 600. In the end, Roo fetched more than $ 10,000 for Beat NB.

    "We give back to the community 19 we can. We are blessed to be able to be doing what we do," said one of the buyers with a 20 of pride.

    I was five foot ten and weighed between 340 and 360 pounds; the exact number depended on whether you took my weight before or after one of my big meals. I knew that I needed to 1.

    "At every 2, just make sure that at least half your plate is full of fruits and 3." And my doctor suggested I start with 20 minutes of easy exercise twice a day. "Something you can enjoy, like taking a walk. And I suggest that you go to 4 a dog."

    "A dog is a good partner," she said. "Plus, you live in an apartment, which means the dog has to be walked. So you walk your dog twice a day, and that will be your 5."

    "I've never owned a dog. What about a cat?" I asked.

    "Have you ever seen anyone 6 a cat?"

    My friend Casaundra said she had the 7 dog for me. There he was: a large black-and-white dog with a big round body. He looked up at me and then 8 his head with a clear look of 9. Like, Really? This loser? I suppose I looked at him the same way.

    I named him Peety, and we took it 10, just as my doctor had suggested. Peety weighed 75 pounds when a healthy 11 for him was more like 50 pounds. But on our first walk together, Peety took the lead. We made it halfway down the 12 and then came back. Luckily for me, he didn't walk very fast. You could 13 hear my footsteps on the sidewalk as I 14 each leg forward—thump, thump, thump, like the giant from "Jack and the Bean Stalk." The next day we made it to the 15 of the block. Soon he would 16 me around the block.

    Over the next weeks, Peety kept 17 harder and harder on the leash(束缚). There were times when I couldn't 18, even though I'd dropped five pounds a week 19 I started the plant-based eating and walking.

    We walked together for nearly five years, until Peety died of cancer. He'd come into my life, and simply by being here, he 20 me. And in that moment, I felt like the two of us could have done anything.