This was my grandmother's first Christmas without grandfather. When we reached her house, it did seem a little 1 without grandfather.

    Grandfather had always said the Christmas 2 was the most important. So we set to work assembling (组装) the beautiful 3 tree that was stored in grandfather's closet (储藏柜). After we finished, we stepped back to 4 our work. It looked wonderful. But something was 5.

    "Where's the star?"I asked. It was my grandmother's 6. As we emptied box after box and found no star, my grandmother's eyes 7 with tears. Grandfather had given it to grandmother fifty years ago. Now, on her first Christmas without 8, the star was gone, too.

    "Let's 9 in the closet where the tree was, "my sister Donna said. We 10 under beds and over shelves, inside and outside 11we had excluded every possibility. We could see grandmother was 12, although she tried not to show it. By now, it was 13 outside, and time for bed, as Santa would soon be here.

    The next morning, my sister and I 14 early to see what Santa had left under the tree. After breakfast, the family sat together to 15 presents."The last gift is to grandmother from grandfather. "Father said, in a puzzled voice.

    "From who?"There was 16 in my grandmother's voice.

    "I found that 17 in the closet when we got the tree down, "Mother explained.

    My grandmother opened it. Her face lit up when she pulled out a(n) 18 golden star. There was a note attached. Her voice trembled (颠抖) as she read it:

    Don't be 19 with me, dear. I broke your star while putting away the tree. Thought it was time for a new one, I hope it brings you as much 20 as the first one. Merry Christmas.

    I was on a plane returning home to Dallas, Texas after completing my duty in Vietnam. There were no hometown parades for us veterans （退役老兵） from that1war and I had been warned about the unfriendliness from our countrymen at that time.2, I was just trying to get home without incident.

    I sat, in uniform, in a window seat,3eye contact with my fellow passengers. No one was sitting in the seat next to me, which4my loneliness. A little girl, not more than 10 years old, suddenly5 in the passage. She smiled and, without a word,6handed me a magazine. I accepted her7together with her quiet “welcome home”. I turned to the window and wept. Her small8of caring was the first I had9 in a long time.

    I believe in the10between strangers when we reach out to one another.

    Today, that young girl 11 has no memory of what happened years ago. I like to think of her as having grown up, continuing to12others and teaching her children to do the same. I know she might have been told to give me the “13” by her parents. It doesn't matter why she gave me the magazine. The 14thing is she did.

    From then on, I have followed her15 and tried, in different ways for 16people, to do the same for them. I know that my 17since then are all due to that little girl. Her offer of a magazine to a tired, scared and 18soldier has echoed throughout my 19. I have to believe that my small gestures have the same20 on others.

    When I was a little girl, I remember that when my dad was repairing something, every time he asked me to 1 the hammer, just so we would have a time for a 2 with each other. I 3 saw my dad drinking or taking a night out with the boys, all he did after 4 was taking care of his family.

    I 5 and left home for college and since then, my dad had been calling me every Sunday morning, no matter what. And when several 6 later I bought a house, my dad was 7 it by himself for three days in the 80°F summer heat. All he 8 was to hold his paint brush and talk to him. But I was too 9 in those days, I did not find any time for a conversation with my dad.

    One Sunday 10 we had a telephone talk as usual, I noticed that my dad had 11 some things that we discussed 12. I was in a hurry, so our conversation was 13. Few hours later that day came a call. My father was in a hospital with an aneurysm(动脉瘤). 14 I bought a ticket for a flight and 15 I was thinking about all 16 occasions(场合) to have a talk with my dad.

    By the time I17 at the hospital, my father had passed away. Now it was he who did not have 18 for a conversation with me. After his death I19 much more about him, and even more about myself. All he ever asked me was my time. And now he has all my20every single day.

    A lady wanted a birthday gift from her husband. For many months she had liked a beautiful 1, and knowing her husband could 2 it, she told him that was all she wanted. On the morning of the 3 husband told her how 4 he was to have such a good wife, and how much he loved her. He 5 her beautiful gift package (盒). She opened it and 6 a Bible. 7, she raised her voice and said to her husband. "With all your money, you give me a Bible?" She was so 8 that she left him.

    Many years passed and the lady was very 9 in business. She owned two large companies. She 10 her husband was very old, and thought perhaps she should go to 11 him. But before she could, she 12 a letter telling her that he had died, and gave all of his possessions (财产) to her. She needed to come back 13 take care of things.

    When she arrived at his house, sadness 14 her heart. She saw the still new 15, just she had left it years before. With 16 she opened it and began to turn the pages. A ring 17 from Bible to the floor and a 18 could be seen. She picked it up and found it was the ring she wanted in those days. And on the card was the date of her birth, and the words "LOVE YOU ALWAYS".

    19 your gift is not packaged the way you want it, it's because it is better packaged! Always appreciate little things; they usually lead you to bigger things in the world! The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched for they must be felt with the 20.

    Years ago a professor gave a group of graduate students this assignment: Go to the slums (贫民窟). Take 200 boys between the ages of 12 and 16, investigate their 1 and environment and then 2 their chances for the future. The students，after 3 social statistics, talking to the boys and compiling (汇编) much data, 4 that 90 percent of the boys would spend some time in 5.

    Twenty five years later another group of graduate students were given the job of 6 the previous prediction. They went back to the 7 area. Some of the boys—now 8 —were still there, a few had died and some has moved away. But they managed to 9 180 of the original 200.They found that only four of the boys had ever been sent to prison.

    Why was it that these men, who had lived in a breeding place of 10, had such surprisingly 11 record? The researchers were 12 told. "Well, there was a 13."

    They investigated 14 and found that in 78 percent of the 15 it was the same woman. The researchers went to the teacher, now living in a home for 16 teacher. How had she had this remarkable 17 on that group of children? Could she give them any reason why these boys 18 her? "No," she said, "I really couldn't." And then, 19 over the years, she said musingly (沉思地), more to herself than to her questioners, "I 20 these boys." The researchers finally realized that it was the teacher's care that made a difference.

    Dealing with a disability can be a difficult task for anyone, but it's nothing for Roger. Having double disabilities all his life has made life a forever1. Roger was born prematurely (早产)and2in the hospital for nine months after birth. He was3of any other medical issues that he suffered at that time.

    Roger knew that he had poor4when he was a little boy. In school he couldn't see clearly what other5did, so the Library for Blind and Physically Handicapped provided him with large-print6and audio cassettes. He had barely graduated from high school due to the7of earlier assistance in high school. In 2008 he lost the remainder of usable sight8. The loss of vision was because of Graves' disease. He did not know he had it9he went to a specialist.

    As for his secondary10, his legs have given him difficulty all his life due to injuries. He severely broke his both11at 5 years old owing to falling on the ice. At that time he was too12to receive special surgeries (外科手术). As Roger gets older, he has had four surgeries on his knees. Even though the surgeries are all successful, Roger cannot13as common people do.

    To this day, it is a daily battle and he continues to14. Roger won't sit around and says if he only lives in this way, this is a15of his time. He never16, because he always believes that disability does not17incompetence. Roger always tries his best to enjoy every day and realizes his18or goals. By teaching Braille (盲文)and working at his local community, now he is famous in the US. Whoever you are, you can always try to do19good for other people, which makes your life more20.