I grew up in a small town and the main entertainment was football on Friday night. It was just a sleepy little town where parents wanted to raise their children away from crime and 1 of a big city, and where teenagers like me 2 leaving to find something bigger and better.

    All that changed one summer night. My friend Lisa, Martin and Tyler held a party for my eighteenth birthday at Lisa's house. 3 they kept handing alcohol to me, I was pretty 4. I asked Tyler to take me home. With some 5, we made it out to his car and drove home. News came next morning. My friend Martin was 6 in a car accident. That night after Tyler and I left, Martin, who was   7 more drunk than me, got into his car and 8 towards the highway to go home. Driving on the wrong side of the road, he never saw the truck coming. The driver didn't see him 9 to avoid the car. They hit head on. Martin died immediately, and the driver was thrown 10 the truck windshield（挡风玻璃）and died a week later.

    Whenever I 11 back on that day, I can't help thinking that it was my 12 to drink so much that night. 13 things would be different. I know Martin 14 the choice to drink and drive that night, but I will always feel 15 for what happened. I may not change the world with my story, but I do hope that by 16 my story I can make you 17 that you not only have a responsibility for yourself but also for others. Don't ever think that your choices are yours 18. Every choice is like a stone dropped into 19water—each ripple (涟漪) represents someone who your choice 20. That's quite an influence, isn't it?

    When I was a law professor, a student reported that I made an error in grading his exam by giving him too many points. He was 1 and after thanking him for his honesty, I changed the 2 in my records. His beaming (欢笑的) face turned to 3. “You're lowering my grade?” he said angrily. “I would never have come in 4 ……”. He didn't finish the 5, but it was obvious that his display of honesty was false. He thought he'd have it all— praise and the 6 grade. Several colleagues thought I should have let the higher grade 7 because all I'd accomplished was to discourage him from being 8 in the future. And every time I tell this 9, some people agree with this remark. But I can't see how I could give good 10 for worsening my mistake in grading by undermining (损害) the honesty of all my grades by failing to 11 an error. The grade itself would be a dishonest 12 of his knowledge and it would have been 13to other students. How could I possibly give a student a gift of an14 grade? I know 15 reporting an error in one's favor is unusual, but, like 16 extra change, it's clearly the right thing to do. People of character, those with real honesty, hate to give up benefits as 17 as anyone else. The difference is that for them a good conscience and reputation is 18enough to give reason for the cost of doing the right thing. Perhaps lowering the student's grade did 19 him from being honest in the future, but bribing (贿赂) him to be honest so that he does the right thing when it's cost-free would have 20him even more. The duty to be honest is about right and wrong, not risks and rewards.

    The famous composer, Albert Roussel, didn't have a good start in this career. However, he achieved a great deal of success as a result of a 1.

    Roussel's parents died when he was eight and he went to live with his 2. As a little boy, he fell in love with music and3himself about it by reading through the family collection that his mother kept, 4 which there were a lot of related books. Three years later, Roussel's grandfather died, and his mother's sister decided to 5 him. Her husband was a kind man and6for young Roussel's music lessons. One summer vacation at a Belgian seaside added a second 7to his life—the sea. Then he studied to be a naval cadet（海军学员）, but still took time to study 8.

    In the French Navy, he and two friends found the time to 9a band, playing the works of Beethoven and other10. Roussel also began composing. On Christmas day 1892, he had his first chance to 11as a composer, which turned out to be a success.

    That success 12 Roussel to write a wedding march（婚礼进行曲）, and one of his navy friends 13to show it to a famous conductor, Edouard Colonne. When Roussel's friend 14with the manuscript（手稿）, he reported that Colonne had advised Roussel to 15his naval career and devote his life to music.

    Not long,16, at the age of 25, Roussel decided to 17Edouard Colonne's advice. He gave his heart and soul to his composing and 18 a major force in twentieth century French music. Because of Eduoard Colonne's inspiring 19, Roussel devoted his life to music, but Rousssel's20friend later admitted that he had made it up. He said he had never even shown Roussel's manuscript to the famous conductor.

    As a boy I was always small for my age. I was also five years younger than one of my brothers and seven years younger than the other.1, I often felt left out when their friends came over to 2. I was too3for whatever they were doing and they didn't want their younger brother listening in on their conversations either. More often than not I found myself outside playing4and feeling forgotten.

    I remember one spring afternoon feeling especially5as I sat in the yard behind our house. We lived miles from town and I6 saw my own friends outside of school. I7my brothers laughing from8the house and felt a single tear coming down my cheek. At that moment I saw a large brown dog9me. He was wagging（摇摆）his tail10.He greeted me like a long lost11, licking（舔）my hand and sitting beside me on the grass,12he didn't know me. I petted and 13 this four-legged angle（天使）.He let me pour out all my troubles and 14my deepest thoughts before he kissed me goodbye. I went back inside feeling happy, 15that no matter what life might hold I was loved. I 16that the dog was sent in that moment of 17to remind me just how much I was loved.

    In truth, nothing brings us greater 18than knowing we are loved. Knowing we are loved gives us the 19to love others as well. It also helps us to be the people the world meant for us to be. Remember how much the word loves you and share your 20 with the world.

    A little boy almost considered himself as the most unfortunate child in the world because a terrible illness made his leg lame（癖的）. He 1 played with his classmates; and when the teacher asked him to answer questions, he always 2 his head without a word.

    One spring, the boy's father got some saplings （树苗）3 the neighbor and told his 4 to plant one each person. The father also 5 to buy a favorite gift for whoever grew best. The boy also wanted to get his father's 6. But seeing his brothers and sisters carry water actively, he lost 7. So after watering it once or twice, he never8 it.

    A few days later, when the little boy went to see his tree again, he was 9 to find that it appeared greener and 10 than his sisters' and brothers'. His father 11 his promise, and said that he would surely become an outstanding botanist（植物学家）when he 12 up.

    From then on, the little boy slowly became 13. One night, looking at the bright moonlight outside, he suddenly recalled what the 14 teacher once said: plants generally grow at night. Then he came to the courtyard and unexpectedly found his father 15 under his tree with a big spoon. 16, he understood: his father had been secretly watering his small tree! He 17 to his room, tears running down out of control.

    Decades passed. The little boy didn't become a botanist, 18 he was elected President of the United States. His name was Franklin Roosevelt.

    19 is the best nutrition （营养）of life; even if it is just one spoonful of clear 20, it can make the tree of life lively.

I've been writing now for 34 years. It all started when I was just 18 years. As a boy growing up, I probably read hundreds of books. I read mysteries, science fiction, thrillers, and just about any other type of book I could find. I had a thirst for knowledge that never seemed to disappear, no matter how many books I read over the years.

Then suddenly, I found that I too had ideas of my own that I wanted to write and share. I wanted to share things that were full of goodness, love, joy, and happiness. I tried to ignore my desire at first, but as any writer will tell you, once ideas awaken inside of you, they don't leave you alone until you write them down. I didn't have a computer, or even a typewriter, but I grabbed a pen and a notebook and wrote down everything that was burning inside of me.

When I was finally done, I didn't know how to share my work with the world. There was no Internet back then, no smartphones, and no social media. However, I sought out the editor of my local newspaper and asked if he would like to print what I'd written. He was a good man, full of both wisdom and kindness. He not only printed my first story but agreed to publish anything else I was willing to write.

After that, of course, nothing could stop me. I continued to write new articles each week, which were published in different local papers and later on the Internet. Years later I even self-published two collections of my stories in book form.

Through my writing, I slowly became a better person. Writing allowed me to discover the goodness and light that exist in us all. I also found that we are all writers whether we put pen to paper or not.

With every choice we make, with every thought we think, and with every action we take, we are writing our own life story.