Maggie was assigned to a public school in the middle of the year, and the headmaster asked her to teach Class 4-B right away. She heard that the former teacher had 1 suddenly, but the headmaster didn't tell her 2. All he told her was that this was a class of  “3 students”.    

    First day, she walked into the classroom, spitballs (纸团) 4 through the air, feet on desks, the noise deafening. She walked to the front of the classroom and 5 the attendance book(考勤簿). Next to 20 names on the list were IQ scores: 140,141...160. “Oh,” she thought to herself, “6 they are so high-spirited. These children have exceptional IQs.” She 7 and brought them to order, 8 that she could teach such high-quality students.       

    At first Maggie found the students 9 to turn in work, and that assignments that were handed in were done 10, full of mistakes. She spoke to everyone, “ With your IQ, I  11 nothing short of (除…之外) the best work from you.”       

    The whole term Maggie continually 12 them of their responsibility to use all the extra intelligence God had given them. Things began to 13. The children worked hard. Their work was creative and excellent. At the end of the term, the headmaster 14 Maggie into his office. “What magic have you done to these kids? ” He asked 15. “Their work has surpassed (超过) all the regular classes.” “It is just 16. They're smarter than regular students! You said yourself they are special students.” Maggie was 17. “I said they are special because they are the special need students—behavioral disordered.” “Then why are their IQs so 18 on the attendance sheet?” Maggie pulled out the sheet and passed it to the headmaster. “Those aren't their IQs. Those are their locker 19 at the gym. Sorry, Ms. Maggie, your kids are not geniuses(天才).” Maggie paused a bit, and smiled, “If someone 20 himself to be a genius, he will become one. I'm teaching them as geniuses again next year.”      

    Jean is a clever young woman who comes from a rich and famous family. She goes to a(n) 1 university and has everything that money can buy. Well, 2 everything. The only problem is that the people in Jean's family are so 3 that they can hardly find time to be with her.

    So Jean 4 a lot of her time on MSN. She likes being anonymous (匿名的), 5 to people who do not know about her famous family and her 6 life. She used the name Linda on MSN and has 7 a lot of friends who she contacts quite 8.

    Last year Jean made a very 9 friend on MSN. His name was David and he lived in San Francisco. David was full of stories and jokes. He and Jean had a common 10 in rock music and modem dance. 11 it always took them hours to talk 12 on MSN and sometimes they even 13 the time. Of course, they wanted to know more about each other. David 14 a picture of himself: a tall, good-looking young 15 with a big, happy smile. As 16 went by, they became good friends and often sent cards and small things to each other.

    When Jean's father told her that he was going 17 a business trip to San Francisco, she asked her father to let her 18 with him, so that she could give David a 19 for his birthday. She would take him the latest DVD of their favorite 20 singer. But when Jean knocked on David's door in San Francisco, she found that the special friend she had been contacting was a twelve-year-old boy named Jim.

    The hardworking blacksmith Jones used to work all day in his shop and so hard-working was he that at times he would make the sparks fly from his hammer.

    The 1of Mr. Smith, a rich neighbor, used to come to see the blacksmith every day and for hours and hours he would2 himself watching how the tradesman worked.

    "Young man, why don't you try your 3to learn to make shoe tacks(鞋钉), even if it is only to kill the time?" said the blacksmith. "Who knows, one day, it may be of use to you."

    The lazy boy began to see what he could do. But after a little 4 he found that he was becoming very5 and soon he was making some of the finest tacks.

    Old Mr. Smith died and the son on account of the war6all his goods. He had to leave home and was7 to take up residence(居住) in another country. It 8 happened that in this village there were numerous shoemakers who were9 a lot of money to buy tacks for their shoes and even at times when they paid10 prices they were not always able to get what they wanted, because in that part of the country there was a high11for soldiers' shoes.

    Our young Mr. Smith, who was 12 it difficult to 13 his daily bread, remembered that once upon a time he had learned the art of 14 tacks and had the15 idea of making a 16 with the shoemakers. He told them that he would make the tacks if they would help to get him 17 in his workshop. The shoemakers were only too glad of the18. And after a while, Mr. Smith found that he was soon making the finest tacks in the village.

    "How19 it seems," he used to say, "even making tacks can bring a 20. My trade is more useful to me than were all my former riches."

    It had been a long drive to the Veteran's hospital. My brother and I had gone to1my Dad who had been2days earlier, weak, sick and confused. The3had diagnosed him with pneumonia(肺炎) and found cancer cells in his brain. My Dad looked so4lying there in bed. It wasn't just the5that was getting to him. It was also being so6his family and friends.

    As I sat by his7, a little woman with a big smile8into his room. She was at least 80 years old but seemed to have the9of someone 60 years younger. She was a volunteer10handmade get-well cards from the local elementary school. Gently, she took my Dad's hand and thanked him for his service to our country. It was the first time since he had gotten11that I saw my Dad smile. I12her into the hallway as she left and13her for lifting my Dad's14. "I am just sharing a little15, sweetie," she said with a smile as she walked into the next16room to share a little more.

    That 80-year-old angel reminded me again of what is17in this life: sharing our love. When we share our love, we create18not only in the hearts of those19us, but in our own hearts as well. When we share our love, we find ourselves doing what we were always20to do. When we share our love, we make our souls lighter, our lives brighter and the world better.

    John's parents acquired the washer when he was a small boy. It happened during World War Ⅱ. His family never 1 a washing machine and, since gasoline was expensive, they could not 2 trips to the laundry several miles away. Keeping clothes 3 became a problem for young John's household.

    A family friend joined the army, and his wife 4 to go with him. John's family 5 to store their furniture while they were away. To the family's 6, the friend suggested they use their Bendix. So this is how they 7 the washer.

    Young John helped with the washing, and across the years he 8 a love for the old, green Bendix. But 9 the war ended. When the friends came to take it back, John grew terribly 10. His mother 11 him and said. "You must remember, that machine 12 belonged to us in the first place. That we ever got to use it at all was a gift. So, instead of being mad at it being taken 13, let's use this 14 to be grateful that we had it at all."

    The lesson turned out 15. Years later, John watched his eight-year-old daughter die a slow and painful death of leukemia (白血病). Though he 16 for months with her death, John could not begin getting over from the 17 until he remembered the old Bendix.

    His daughter was a 18. When he realized the simple fact, everything changed. He could now begin recovering from the death of his daughter. He started to see her as a marvelous gift that he was fortunate enough to 19 for a time. He felt 20. He found strength and recovery. He knew he could get through the valley of loss.

    I had reached the age of twenty-eight. Still, I1 whether the letter from my past would make it to me, all these years later. It was a2 writing task from when I was eighteen. The teacher collected our letters to our3 selves in self-addressed envelope with stamps and promised to4 them ten years later. But since so much time had passed, would he even5 ?

    Thinking back on the6 , I recalled giving my future self some advice. When you're eighteen Years old, twenty-eight seems like a7  age, but I wasn't feeling as mature as I believed my younger self had8 me to be.

    When the letter finally reached me, I opened it9 . It began, "How much do you bet this letter will never get to you? "It continued to greet me casually10 we were having an IM (instant messaging) chat. As a senior in high school, facing the11 SATS and college application, my eighteen-year-old self was so12 ! She was apparently not quite happy and hoped I wouldn't worry so much in the future, and that I wouldn't forget to be present and13 my life!

    14 to my belief, my eighteen-year-old self did not have any demands of me, or expectations I might have15 meet. Instead, she wrote, "I'll16 whatever you do. Even if you are not the one I'm imagining now, I'll support you, because maybe17 I'm imagining is someone else, but you're not someone else, you're me.

    I was18 , and tears welled up in my eyes at this19 through time. I had put a lot of pressure on myself to be the best version of myself that I could be.20 , I came to realize what I would have accomplished in ten years would pale in comparison(相形见细)to how I'd feel and who I'd be.