At my heaviest I weighed 370 pounds. I had a very poor relationship with food: I used it to 1bad feelings, to make myself feel better, and to celebrate. Worried about my health, I tried many different kinds of 2 but nothing worked. I came to believe that I could do nothing about my 3.

    When I was 50, my weight problem began to affect me 4 . I didn't want to live the rest of my life with this 5 weight any more.

    That year, I6 a seminar where we were asked to create a project that would touch the world. A seminar leader shared her 7story —she had not only 125 pounds, but also raised $25,000 for homeless children.

   8 by her story, I created the As We Heal(痊愈), the World Heals 9. My goal was to lose 150 pounds in one year and raise $50,00010 a movement founded 30 years ago to end hunger. This combination of healing myself and healing the world11 me as the perfect solution.

    12I began my own personal weight program, I was filled with the fear that I would 13 the same difficulties that beat me before. While the 14 hung over my head, there were also signs that I was headed down the right 15. I sent letters to everyone I knew, telling them about my project. It worked perfectly. Donations began 16in from hundreds of people.

    Of course, I also took some practical steps to lose weight. I consulted with a physician（内科医生）, I hired a fitness coach, and I began to eat small and 17meals. My fund-raising focus also gave me new motivation to exercise 18.

    A year later, I19my goal: I lost 150 pounds and raised $50,000! I feel that I've been given a second life to devote to something that is 20 and enormous.

    For me personally, I could write for days about many different situations where adversity (逆境)1my life. Now let me tell you one experience where I almost let adversity2.

    We had a glass studio, which was located 50 feet from our home. A couple of years ago we experienced an 3winter; we had a lot of snow and ice. The4of the ice and snow5the roof on our studio, taking with it one of our sources of income.6it did fall down, we got on the roof and tried to 7the snow and ice, but when you have 5 feet of ice and temperatures of minus 20 Celsius, it was pretty8to do.

    We had a partner come in to help us try to9the roof by supporting. In the end, there was 10that could be done. The roof came down. We had moved a lot of our goods and tools from the studio11 we lost a lot also: glass, kilns, work benches, to name only a few of the items. It was a 12experience.

    Here we were in the middle of winter with our studio collapsed. We couldn't work as we had almost 13all the material in a building we were not using. We could have done one of two things: we could simply say that we can no longer 14 our glass business. Let me tell you that this was certainly a thought that15our mind. Or we could find a way to get our studio back up and running.

    We picked the16option. We had a large barn that we were not using. So we renovated (翻新) the barn17our working area and today we have a nicer studio than we 18 had. If the adversity we were19had not happened, we probably would20be working in the old studio—a studio that was less efficient.

    Abbaye, a master artist, was ready to retire in 1392.One day, Bartoli, a rich Italian merchant, 1him saying, “Could you 2 my portrait on my banquet room wall? It's 20 feet tall.”

    “I'm ready to retire，” Abbaye shook his head, “so I'm not 3.” But seeing the disappointment in Bartoli's eyes, he 4 his mind.“Well, there's a possibility if you can find it in your 5to allow me to explore the6of my abilities.Furthermore, only I can see your 7.So I insist that while I work your portrait I stay 8—even from you！”

    “No problem，” Bartoli agreed, though he thought it was 9.“Anything you wish, but it must look realistic.”

    Immediately the master artist 10 a high curtain in front of the wall, through which Bartoli couldn't see at all.

    A week passed.“How is it coming？” asked the 11 Bartoli.

    “It's coming quite well.You see, a masterpiece 12 quite a while at least.” Abbaye answered from behind the 13.

    Another three, four weeks passed and 14 half a year went by.Bartoli lost his 15.“Today I must see it！” he shouted.

    Stepping from behind the curtain 16 surprised by such anger, Abbaye said calmly, “That's fine.You needed only to request it.” And he 17 aside the 20­foot curtain.

    Bartoli stared at the masterpiece and then his mouth 18 open.He was obviously so angry that his eyes 19 red.So what was wrong? Abbaye had drawn to his heart's20 for 20 feet tall.Perhaps Bartoli couldn't tolerate his abstract expression, which Picasso would have been proud of.

    When I was in high school, I belonged to a club that did community service work. There was one special1that was uncommon for me. I spent three or four hours2out warm dinner to the homeless out in the streets and then in a homeless3not far from the Bay Bridge as well.

    I was in high school and at the time my little sister was too 4to join in. She wanted to help, so she made many chocolate chip cookies for me to5and hand out to people. When getting to the shelter(避难所 ).I passed out the6 .I began making sandwiches and7them with the crowd. I had the boxes with my sisters8in them and began to9around offering them to anyone near me.

    I moved towards an old gentleman and said, "Sir, would you like a cookie?" He stopped and 10looked at me and said. "What did you say? Did you call me sir? I told him I had, and his eyes 11a little bit and said "No one has ever called me sir in the Past 60 years." So he was completely 12when I did so.

    It shocked me. I explained I had been raised that whatever a person's13and social position were, he deserved respect. It 14me to think that just because he was homeless, no one 15 him the honor. It broke my heart. I just didn't understand why no one ever called him sir, I had never thought that anyone was 16me because I wasn't raised that way. Every 17 person deserves to be treated with respect. Years later, I still18that memory and the19it taught me .Sometimes, what we take for granted can20make a difference in someone s life.

    A Florids woman walked into a Publix supermarket last week. She asked a(n)1  ques­tion at the bakery counter, “Are there any first-birthday cakes scheduled for 2 over the weekend?

    Nick DeClemente, who works at the store, was initially 3 by the request. He then asked if the woman had any 4 person in mind. To his surprise, she didn't.

    The woman said, "No, I want to pay for one anonymously (匿名),"

    Minutes later, she started to burst into 5. She then explained to him that her baby was born 6 one year ago and she wanted to 7 his memory by paying for another 1-year-old's birthday cake.

    "I was a little lost for words just because of the deep 8 I developed for her," DeClemente recalled. He 9a pile of cake orders and picked out an order for a birthday cake for a 1-year-old boy named David. The buttercream topped sheet cake, which 10 at least 20 people, cost $32.99. The woman 11 agreed to pay.

    “She told me, “Thank you, and 12 that I let her do this," DeClemente said” "I hope that this lady finds 13 through this gift and that the customer receiving this gift will pay it 14, "“I told her how much it made my 15 especially because I have a little boy on the way and wished her many 16." DeClemente said, explaining he was standing by the stores front door as she was 17.

    The dad-to-be said he never got her name nor did he get a 18 to explain to the customer whose cake was paid for the story behind the 19 gesture — but he hopes their paths 20 again.

    I had stopped to get gas at a place where I almost never go. I had 1 about cleaning my windshield (挡风玻璃). But then when the gas 2 was almost finished, I decided for some reason to 3 and clean it. That's what I was doing when a woman approached me and asked for 4.

    There were two women, one middle aged, the other twenty-something, 5 a young child in the back seat. On a day when the temperature was well past 100, they were 6 in an old car with no air conditioning, driving from a town about an hour away.

    "Can you tell us how to get to Mopac, sir?" She had a folded-up printout of directions from Google maps. "Sure. Where on Mopac are you 7?" I asked. She unfolded the printout and showed me the 8. I knew it well, and started to get the 9 that this moment was meant to happen. "I know 10 where that is." I told her. "I used to have a(n) 11 in that building to work in."

    I 12 giving directions to the older lady, and then again to her 13, who was the driver. It took a while, because I 14 each instruction to make sure they understood. In a sincere moment of 15, the older lady thanked me.

    The whole 16 helped me much more than it helped her. I had been having a very 17 day. In fact, the only reason I had gone to that particular gas station was that I wanted to take a little drive and 18 my head.

    As I replaced the gas cap, having sent them on their way, I suddenly 19 that I felt better. My head was clear. And I am 20 for the real goodness it brought into my life.