“Mum ,can I invite my classmate Brett over to stay tomorrow night, please? It's Friday ,and we don't have any,Can I1 please?”Mum was sitting at the kitchen table. Dad was2next to her, resting his head on his arms. Mum could3that James wanted so badly to have his friend over.

    “I'm so sorry, James,”she said.

    “I'm never allowed to have friends come to the house? Why, Mum?”James asked sadly ,almost in4

    “I know it's5for you,”Mum said softly.“But I'm just worried other people might think we're a little... strange. And then they would make fun of you.”

    “No, they wouldn't, Mum,”James protested.“We're not6at all. We're just ordinary people.”

    Mum sighed heavily.“To tell you the truth, James, my neck has been so painful that it's given me a heavy7And your poor father—he doesn't feel8He really needs a rest.”

    “I can help, Mum!”James said.“9I can make you and Dad feel better ,can Brett come over? Please?”

    “Well...”Mum began.

    “Great !Thanks, Mum!”James almost shouted.“Just sit there ,don't move.”He rushed over to the kitchen drawer and10what he needed—two spanners(扳手).“Hang on, Mum,”he said.“This won't take a second.”After some11, James was finished. With a smile of12on his face he said,“There! How does that feel? ”“Oh, James,”Mum said.“That's much better! How did you do it?”

    “Easy,”James said13“Dad had tightened your neck bolts(螺栓)too much! I just14them slightly !I learned that in robotic science at school.”

    “What about your father? Can you15him?”asked Mum.

    “I'll try,”James replied. He16up Dad's hair at the back of his neck , and plugged the electric wire into Dad's head. Then he turned the17on. Dad opened his eyes and18immediately .“ He just let his19run too low ,that's all,”James said,“Shall I tell Brett to come over straight after school tomorrow?”

    “I guess so,”replied Mum.“Your friends will just have to20that we are a very unusual family. Thanks, son!”

    I learned to do wood work when I was very young. I remember I made my first project—a small table when I was 9 years old. I was so1of it that I looked upon it as if I had created a(an)2. It was absolutely beautiful and it had taken me six weeks to3it. I could hardly wait to give it to Mother Winters as a(an)4. She was the head mistress of our orphanage（孤儿院）, who was always kind but5with us.

    As the tables were not dry from the clear coating(清漆), our woodworking teacher told us to wait a few days before taking them to our dormitories. But I was just so6and happy that I couldn't wait. I dashed out like a7, carrying my table, smiling from ear to ear.

    When I reached the dormitory I placed the little table beside my bed. I was8it when Mother Winters entered. She walked over to the table. Running her hand9it, she noticed that it was still wet.

    “Were you 10to bring this home?” she asked.

    “No, ma'am,” I 11with my head down.

    She ordered me to throw the table out and so I did. After she left, I immediately opened the door to get it back. There was 12stuck all over. I brushed and cried, but the dirt would not come off.

    I hid the table in my closet and never 13it. However, a year later during a cleaning-up, it was discovered. Painfully, I had to give the table to Mother Henderson, my houseparent, thinking that she would 14it away.

    Thirty years later at a reunion, I15that Mother Henderson was living nearby, so I drove up to see her. We talked cheerfully for a long time. As I was about to leave, she asked me to come down to her 16to get something important. I followed her 17into a dark corner. She picked something up.18she turned around, I could see that she was holding a little table. Mother Henderson kept the little table that I had given up for lost so long ago.

    Today, I look at that table with bittersweet memories but full of 19to Mother Henderson, who kept the table for a young orphan who20it so much.

Inspiration

    “Mama, when I grow up, I'm going to be one of those!” I said this after seeing the Capital Dancing Company perform when I was three. It was the first time that my1 took on a vivid form and acted as something important to start my training. As I grew older and was 2to more, my interests in the world of dance 3 varied but that little girl's dream of someday becoming a 4 in the company never left me. In the summer of 2005 when I was 18, I received the phone call which made that dream a 5I became a member of the company6 back to 1925.

    As I look back on that day now, it surely 7 any sense of reality. I believe I stayed in a state of pleasant disbelief8 I was halfway through rehearsals (排练) on my first day. I never actually9 to get the job. After being offered the position, I was completely10I remember shaking with excitement.

    Though I was absolutely thrilled with the change, it did not come without its fair share of 11. Through the strict rehearsal period of dancing six days a week, I found it vital to 12 up the material fast with every last bit of concentration. It is that extreme 13 to detail (细节) and stress on practice that set us 14.To then follow those high-energy rehearsals 15 a busy show schedule of up to five performances a day, I discovered a new 16 of the words “hard work.” What I thought was my physical 17 were pushed much further than I thought 18I learned to make each performance better than the last.

    Today, when I look at the unbelievable company that I have the great19 of being a part of, not only as a member, but as a dance captain, I see a 20 that has inspired not only generations of little girls but a splendid company that continues to develop and grow and inspires people every day to follow their dreams.

I live in Albuquerque, New Mexico. I used to give a lot of money to the homeless, feeling 1 for them. But as time passed, I became a mom with no home, a huge 2, and hardly any income. As a result, I 3 giving money to the people on the side of the road and became very 4. Things started to change for me 5. I had a home, a backyard for my daughter, and plenty of food, and I started to 6 myself out of debt. One day we saw a homeless person with the 7, "Will work for food." I 8. My daughter commented. "Mommy, you used to always give money to those people in 9." I replied, "Honey, they just use that money for 10, or other bad things." She didn't respond. 11 when I said that, I didn't feel right. Three days later, I was driving to 12 my daughter from school. A man was standing on the corner, and something deep 13 me said, "Just help the guy." So I 14 down my window, and he ran over excitedly. He said, "God bless you, I only need 77 cents." I 15 into my ashtray（烟灰缸）and strangely enough, there 16 three quarters and two pennies. I picked them up and gave them to him. He 17 with joy and tears in his eyes. "Wow, you just made it 18 for me to see my mom for Christmas! Thank you so much; the 19 that had this great sale is leaving in 20 minutes!" It was a moment I'll 20 forever. I think that man won't forget it either, but I was the one who got the best gift in life—GIVING.

    My friend and I were at a restaurant in Berkeley for an evening fast food. All of a sudden we decided to do a small act of 1 —to use the smile card to. 2 someone's day.

    Being at a restaurant, we intended to pay for someone else anonymously(匿名)and see what 3. We got all excited with the 4 and set about doing that.

    We looked around for which table we should pay for, and then 5 a table—it seemed like an immigrant family with a few children, 6 their meals at that time. I could sense a family 7 in them and that they were having a nice time together. We called on our waitress to 8 the idea to her.

    As soon as we told her we wanted to pay for another table and showed her the 9, she got super thrilled! We told her about it and made sure she knew we wanted to be anonymous, which made us further 10. After a while, she came back and told us the waitress for that table was 11 to tears when hearing about our idea.

    Soon after, we left, feeling delighted and grateful to get all opportunity to 12 smiles. It is hard to explain how it felt in the moment, but it 13 felt special, not because I was “helping” someone, but because I felt 14 to people I didn't even know—the waitresses and the family. It also, in some form, melted me to see how people 15 to generosity, which has become so 16 in today's commercial lifestyle. I felt something inside me 17.  

    I don't know what happened next, how the family felt and 18 or how the waitresses 19 the situation, but I am sure it brought a few 20 to a few people including myself.

    Each of us fails from time to time. If we are wise, we accept these failures as a 1 part of the learning process. But all too often as parents and teachers we 2 this same right to our children. When I see a child 3 from this kind of pressure, I think of Donnie.

    Donnie was my youngest third-grader. His 4 of failure kept him from classroom games that other children enjoyed. He 5 answered questions — he was afraid he might be wrong. I tried my best to build his 6. But nothing changed until midterm, when Mary Anne, a student teacher, was assigned to our classroom. She was young and pretty, and she loved children. My pupils, Donnie included, all 7 her very much.

    One morning, we were working on math problems at the chalkboard. Donnie had 8 the problems with pains-taking tidiness. Pleased with his progress, I 9 the children with Mary Anne and went for art materials. When I returned, Donnie was in 10. He'd missed the third problem.

    My student teacher looked at me in despair.  Suddenly her face 11. From the desk we shared, she got a container filled with pencils.

    "Look, Donnie," she said, kneeling beside him and gently 12 the tear-stained (弄脏的) face from his arms. "I've got something to 13 you." She removed the pencils, one at a time, and placed them on his desk.

    "See these 14, Donnie," she continued. "They belong to Mrs. Lindstrom and me. See how the erasers are 15? That's because we make mistakes too. But we erase the mistakes and try again. That's what you 16 learn to do, too."

    She kissed him and stood up. "Here," she said, "I'll leave one of these pencils on 17 desk so you'll remember that everybody makes mistakes, 18 teachers." Donnie looked up with love in his eyes and a smile.

    The 19 became Donnie's prized possession. That, together with Mary Anne's frequent encouragement, gradually 20 him that it's all right to make mistakes — as long as you erase them and try again.