Joy in the Journey If you have ever been discouraged because of failure, please read on. For often, achieving what you set out to do is not the important thing. Let me explain.

      Two brothers decided to dig a deep hole behind their house. As they were working, a couple of older boys stopped by to 1. “What are you doing?” asked one of the visitors.“We plan to dig a hole all the way through the   2!” One of the brothers volunteered 3.

     The older boys began to 4, telling the younger ones that digging a hole all the way through the earth was 5. After a long silence, one of the 6 picked up a jar full of spiders, worms and many other kinds of insects. He   7 the lid and showed the wonderful 8 to the scoffing（嘲笑的）visitors. Then he said quietly and 9, “Even if we don't dig all the way through the earth, look at what we have found  10  the way!”

      Their goal was far too ambitious, but it did cause them to dig. And that is   11    a goal is for — to cause us to move in the  12  we have chosen, in other words, to keep us 13! But not every goal will be fully  14. Not every job will end 15. Not every hope will come to pass. Not every love will last. Not every dream will be 16. But when you fall  17 of your aim, perhaps you can say, “Yes, but look at what I found along the way! Look at the wonderful things  18 my life because I tried to do something!” It is in the digging 19 life is lived. And I believe it is the joy in the journey, in the end, that truly  20.

    There are many kinds of friends. Some are always1you, but don't understand you. Some say only a few words to you, but understand you. Many people will step in your life, but only2friends leave footprints.

    I shall always recall the autumn and the girl with the3. She will always bring back the friendship between us. I know she will always be my best friend.

    It was the golden season. I could see the yellow leaves4in the cool wind. In such a5, I liked walking alone in the leaves,6to the sound of them.

    Autumn is a harvest season and7is uninteresting. The free days always get me8. But one day, the sound of a violin9into my ears like a stream flowing in the mountains. I was so surprised that I jumped to see what it was. A young girl, standing in the wind, was10in playing her violin.

    I had11seen her before. The music was so nice that I listened quietly. Lost in the music, I didn't know that I had been12there for so long but my existence did not seem to disturb her.

    Leaves were still falling. Every day she played the violin in the corner of the building13I went downstairs to watch her performance. I was the only listener. The autumn seemed no longer lonely and life became14.Though we didn't know each other, I thought we were already good15. I believe she also liked me.

    Autumn was nearly over. One day, when I was listening carefully, the sound suddenly16.To my surprise, the girl came over to me.

    “You must like violin.” she said.

    “Yes. And you play very well. Why did you stop?” I asked.

Suddenly, a17expression appeared on her face and I could feel something unusual.

    “I came here to see my grandmother, but now I must leave. I once played very badly. It was your listening every day that18me.” she said.

    “In fact, it was your playing19gave me a meaningful autumn,” I answered, “Let's be friends.”

    The girl smiled, and so did I.

    I never heard her play again in my life. I no longer went downstairs to listen like before. Only thick leaves were left behind. But I will always remember the fine figure(身影) of the girl. She is like a20so short, so bright, like a shooting star giving off much light that makes the autumn beautiful.

    When Pat Jones finished college, she decided to travel around the world and see as many foreign places as she could1she was young. Pat wanted to visit Latin America2, so she got a job3an English teacher in a school in Bolivia. Pat spoke a little Spanish4she was able to communicate with her students even when they didn't5much English.

    A sentence she had read somewhere stuck in her mind: if you dream6a foreign language, you have really mastered it. Pat repeated this sentence to her students and7that some day she would dream in Spanish and they would dream in8.

    One day, one of her9students came up and explained in Spanish that he had not done his homework. He had10early, but had slept 11 .

    "What does this have to do with your 12?" Pat asked.

    "I dreamed all night, Miss Jones, and my dream was in English."

    "In English?" Pat was very13, since he was such a bad student. She was14 secretly jealous (嫉妒的). Her15was still not in Spanish. But she encouraged her young student. "Well, 16me about your dream."

    "All the people in my dream17 English." the student said. "And all the signs were in English. All the newspapers and magazines and all the TV programs were in English. "

    "Great. That's18, " said Pat. "What did all the people say to you?"

    "I'm sorry, Miss Jones. That's19I slept so terribly. I didn't20a word they said. It was a nightmare (噩梦 )!"

    There was a businessman who was deep in debt and could see no way out.

    He sat on the park bench, head in hands,1if anything could save his company from bankruptcy.

    Suddenly an old man appeared before him. “I can see that something is2you.” he said.

    After listening to the executive, the old man said: “I believe I can help you.”

    He asked the man his name, wrote out a3, and pushed it into his hand saying: “Take this money. Meet me here exactly one year from today, and you can pay me back at that time.”

    Then he turned and disappeared as4as he had come.

    The businessman saw in his hand a check for $500,000,5by John D. Rockefeller, then one of the richest men in the world!

    “I can6my money worries in an instant!” he realized. But7, he decided to put the uncashed check in his safe. Just knowing it was there might give him the8to work out a way to save his business, he thought.

    With renewed9, he negotiated better deals. Within a few months, he was out of debt and making money once again.

    Exactly one year later, he returned to the10with the uncashed check. At the11time, the old man appeared. But just as the executive was about to12the check and share his success story, a13came running up and grabbed the old man.

    “I'm so delighted I14him!” she cried. “I hope he hasn't been bothering you. He's15escaping from the rest home and telling people he's John D. Rockefeller.”

    And she led the old man away16the arm.

    The businessman just stood there,17.All year long he'd been buying and selling.18he had half a million dollars behind him.

    Suddenly, he realized that it wasn't the money, real or19, that had turned his life around. It was his20self-confidence that gave him the power to achieve anything he went after.

    I did very badly at school. My headmaster thought I was1and when I was 14 he said, "You're never going to be2but a failure."

    After five years of3jobs, I fell in love with a very nice middle-class girl. It was the best4that could have happened to me. I 5I wanted to do something positive (积极地) with my life because I wanted to prove to 6that what people said about me was7. Especially her mother, who had said to me, "Let's8it, you've failed at everything you've ever done." So I tried hard with my9and went to college. My first novel10while I was at college.

    After college I taught during the 11in high schools and attended evening classes at London University, where I got a 12in history. I became a lecturer at a college and was thinking of13that job to write full time14I was offered a part-time job at Leeds University. I began to feel 15of myself — here was a working-class boy who'd16school early, now teaching at the university.

    My writing career (职业) took off when I discovered my own style. Now I'm rich and17, have been on TV, and met lots of film stars. 18what does it mean? I19wish all the people that have put me down had20: "I believe in you. You'll succeed."

    Harper, a third- grade teacher in Southwest Washington D.C, was named the city's teacher of the year and is one of four finalists(决赛选手)in the national1. No teacher in D.C. has ever won the national2since 2005.

    "When I got the call I was so surprised. I was like, Wow, are you3?" said Harper, whose school4students who are mostly black and from low-income families. "But I'm5, being able to share my students' amazing stores. ''

    Harper studied law in college but became interested in6After she graduated in 2012, she decided to teach for a public school7her father left the same school. Her father8dropped out of school, but teachers pulled him back in. Finally he9school and became a business owner.

    "I can't imagine if someone had10my dad," Harper often said.

Like her father's11Harper believes every child has the possibility to learn at high levels and she pushes them to reach those12. Her goal is to build a classroom full of confident 8-years old who won't doubt their13.

    Teaching is painstaking but Harper has no plans to14the classroom. She wants to develop her15skills, continue learning from other teachers and keep improving. Her16goal—maybe in 20 years —is to17more students as the country's education secretary(部长).18 ， her focus now is placed on the students she teaches each day.

    "I want my students to know that I19them and I wish them to take an active part in the classroom" she said. "The more they know you care, the more likely they will be20."