Abbaye, a master artist, was ready to retire in 1392. One day, Bartoli, a rich Italian merchant,  1 him 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  5  to allow me to explore the  6  of my abilities. Furthermore, already I can see your 7 .So I insist

that while l work your portrait 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  14half 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 20 - foot 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's  20  for 20 feet tall. Perhaps Bartoli couldn't tolerate his abstract expression, which Picasso would have been proud of.

One evening I was going back from a supermarket. As I 1my car, I noticed that some person came and stood beside me. He was homeless. I 2that he will ask me for money, but he did not do that. He only said: "Your car is very 3."

After several moments of 4, I replied: "Thanks." And then the inner(内心的) voice 5to me, "Ask him if he needs help." After a short 6 I asked him if he needed any help. His respond was7, I will never forget those simple three words "Don't we all?"

    It was a true 8 to me. I needed help, just as those 9. I had money and a place to sleep, but I 10 needed help. Then I opened my wallet and gave him enough11 to get him to have a shelter for a day.

    12I understood that no matter how much money, achievements, luxury(奢侈)things do we have, we all need help. And on the other hand, no matter howpoor you are, how many 13 problems you have, you still might offer your help to others, you still might be giving. 14 it's just a nice word, it can be 15 to other person.

    Maybe that man was just a homeless stranger, but to me he was 16that. Maybe he was a man sent to 17me that there is one thing, among all other18, which is very important and cannot be 19for every person. Actually, it is a true 20 and it is called Giving.

    When Dave was eighteen, he bought a secondhand car for 200 so that he could travel to and from work more 1 than by bus.It worked quite well for a few years, but then it got so old, and it was costing him 2much in repairs that he decided that he had better 3 it.

    He asked among his friends to see if anyone was particularly  4 to buy a cheap car, but they all knew that it was falling to pieces, so 5 of them had any desire to buy it.Dave's friend Sam saw that he was6when they met one evening, and said, “What's  7, Dave?”

    Dave told him, and Sam answered, “Well, what about advertising it in the paper? You may  8 more for it that way than the cost of the advertisement!” Thinking that Sam's9was sensible（合理的）,he put an advertisement in an evening paper, which read “For sale: small car, 10 very little petrol, only two owners.Bargain（要价）at 50.”For two days after the advertisement first appeared, there was no 11.But then on Saturday evening he had an enquiry（询问）.A man rang up and said he would like to12 him about the car.“All right,” Dave said, feeling happy.He asked the man whether ten o'clock the next morning would be13or not.“Fine,” the man said, “and I'll 14my wife.We intend to go for a ride in it to 15it.”

    The next morning, at a quarter to ten, Dave parked the car in the square outside his front door, 16 to wait there for the people who had17 his advertisement.Even Dave had to18that the car really looked like a  wreck（残骸）.Then, soon after he had got the car as clean19 it could be, a police car stopped just behind him and a policeman got out.He looked at Dave's car and then said, “Have you reported this20 to us yet, sir?”

    Before volunteering to teach in Tanzania, I not only learned local language and custom, but also learned the school I would teach in. So I thought I had good 1 before I stepped into my classroom. I was eager to teach them. First, I2myself to let the students know me. Then, I started to learn the students' names.

    Back in America, I would 3 learn the students' names because I had a special method. However, there as the students said their names, I soon realized that method became 4 . I only learned Glory's name on the first day 5 her constant smile and dimples(酒窝).

    In the following days, only one student asked questions in class while most were not 6 at all. In order to 7 a connection with them, I asked them to regularly write me a letter about their families or interest. When they were writing to me, I was like a 8to them. They regularly poured their thoughts and secrets to me. I learned Glory was sad about her mother's 9. She wished to see her again in heaven. As students 10 to me, I included their interest into my lessons. However, I11 to let most students participate in class activities regardless of my efforts. I was filled with12 .

    Then, one day, everything 13. In the class of that day, without much thinking, I asked Glory if her parents had dimples. Glory's eyes suddenly became 14. She said softly with tears in her eyes, "My mother had." Then all students' backs bent much lower and the class became more 15. My mind flashed to her letters about her mother. I continued speaking, not as an English teacher, but as someone who truly16 my student, "Glory, you have your mother's dimples. So whenever you smile, your mom is with you."

    She looked at me, smiled, then reached up and felt her dimples."17?" she asked. "Yes," I replied. She continued to  18 her cheeks. I added, "19your mom is gone, she will always be in those dimples." Hearing those words, many students felt 20. They began to love me and raise hands in class.

Geraniums of Love

    As the fifth of seven children, I went to the same public school as my three elder sisters and brother. Every year, my mother went to the same ceremony and had parent-child interviews（亲子交流会）with the same teachers. The only thing different was the child. And every child 1 an old

    Geraniums school tradition—the annual plant sale（拍卖会）held in early May, just in time for 2 Day.

    Third grade was the first time that I was allowed to take part in the plant sale. I wanted to surprise my mother. 3, I didn't have any money. I went to my eldest sister and 4 the secret, and she gave me some money. When I arrived at the plant sale, I carefully made my 5. I agonized（苦苦思索）over that decision, 6 each plant to ensure that I had indeed found the best geranium. The moment I had smuggled it home, with the help of my sister, I 7 it on the upstairs neighbor's porch. I was very afraid my mother would find it before Mother's Day, but my sister assured me that she wouldn't, and 8 she did not.

    When Mother's Day arrived, I was bursting with pride when I gave her that geranium. I remember how bright her eyes were, and how delighted she was with my 9.

    The year I was fifteen, my younger sister reached third grade. In early May, she came to me full of wonder and secrecy and told me that there was going to be a plant sale at school and she wanted to 10 our mother. Like my 11 sister did for me, I gave her some money and off she went. She arrived at home full of 12 excitement, the geranium hidden in a paper bag 13 her sweater. "I looked at every plant," she explained, "and I know I got the 14 one!"

    I helped my little 15 hide that geranium on the upstairs neighbor's porch, assuring that our mother wouldn't find it before Mother's Day. I was there when she gave my mother the geranium, and I watched them both bursting with pride and 16. It was like being in a dream I had already dreamed. My mother noticed me 17, and she gave me a soft secret smile. Shocked and puzzled, I 18 back. I had been wondering how my mother could 19 to be surprised at this gift from her sixth child. But as I watched her eyes light up with delight as she was 20 with that most precious gift, I knew she was not pretending.

    When the 28-year-old farmer Ureta met 17-year-old Graciela in his hometown Pampa, they fell in love. Two years later, they 1 and settled down (定居)on the farm where Ureta had been brought up.

    Graciela had many big 2 for the farm in her mind. One day when she was on a 3 over Pampa, Graciela suddenly 4 that another farm looked like a milking pail (桶). Graciela thought her family could create something even more 5 on their own farm-a huge forest 6 like her favorite musical instrument-the guitar.

    But Ureta didn't take his wife's 7 seriously, saying, "We'll talk about it later." Later 8 came. In 1977, Graciela died suddenly of brain cancer at the 9 age of 25 while carrying their fifth child. After his wife's death, Mr. Ureta 10 not satisfying her wish. A few years later, Ureta decided that the best way to honor his wife would be to 11 the big work of art.

    After the local government 12 to help with the project, Ureta and his children took it on their own. One by one, they 13 about 7,000 trees into the "shape of a guitar". It took a few seasons for the trees to take roots(生根),but Ureta's 14 paid off.

    Watching the forest grow over the years gave Graciela's children 15 "It was the closest thing possible to having my mother alive," Maria Julia, Ureta's second daughter, said.