“And this is me kissing the Blarney Stone”, says Carrie, my seventeen-year-old daughter. She turns the pages of her new photo album, recounting her recent ten-day1 abroad, and my mind wanders back…way back to when she was only five.

    “Someday I'm going to Ireland”, she said, holding her Childcraft book in her lap. Her blue eyes 2 as she looked at the beautiful pictures. “Well, maybe you can!” I said. However, it was3 for our family to pay for the luxury of traveling. I was working as a secretary. My husband Charlie had to close his 4 last year due to his poor health…

    Ten years later, Carrie came home from school one day, hardly able to contain her5“Mama, you'll never 6where the class is going. To Ireland!” she smiled 7“You're kidding!” I said. “Ireland! Where you've always wanted to go!”

    “The trip is 8 for year after next, and the $2,100 can be paid in installments (分期付款).” Then she added, “But that's too much… isn't it?” Her voice was9 yet doubting. “Well,” I said slowly, “Daddy and I can't help much10 you have two years to earn the money.” “You think so?” Carrie's face lit up like a Christmas tree. “Well,” I11 “maybe you could use your father's bakery and sell baked goods.” Sell baked goods? We12 at each other. Carrie was an excellent 13! This would work!

    So the plan was14 Carrie began working, making a variety of baked goods. She used dried apples, cooked, seasoned and spiced to perfection. Soon, however, fried apple-pies became the customer favorite. All ingredients were 15—real shortening (起酥油), real butter—and the crust (皮) was handmade and hand-rolled. Finally the pies were fried to a beautiful, golden brown! The finished product was an extremely pleasant treat, winning16from even the little old ladies in these hills who have been making dried-apple pies for decades17 began rolling in, and the Ireland fund grew, and well 18 the given time the trip abroad was paid in full…

    Now I'm looking at her album as she proudly points out the19 she visited: castles of Ireland, historic bridges and churches, cobblestone (鹅卵石) streets of Dublin… so much like those in her Childcraft book. My daughter will forever remember this dream come true, a dream that began in the heart of a five-year-old girl and was completely made 20 by the delicious apple pie!

    I was a single(单身的) parent of four small children, working at a low-paid job. Money was always tight, but I 1 to make ends meet(收支平衡), and if not a lot, 2 we had enough. Not knowing we were poor, my kids just thought I was 3. I've always been glad about that.

    It was Christmas time, and although there wasn't 4 for a lot of gifts, we planned to celebrate with a family party. But the big 5for the kids was the fun of Christmas 6. They planned weeks ahead of time, asking 7 what they wanted for Christmas. 8, I had saved $120 for gifts to be shared by all five of us.

    The big day 9. I gave each kid a twenty-dollar bill and 10 them to look for 11 of about four dollars each. Then everyone went away excitedly. We had two hours to shop and 12 back at the “Santa's Workshop”.

    Driving home, everyone was in high Christmas spirits, 13 my youngest daughter, Ginger, who was unusually 14. She had only one small, flat bag with a few candies —fifty-cent candies! I was very doubtful but I didn't say anything 15 we got home. I called her into my bedroom and closed the door. This is what she told me:

    “I was looking 16 thinking of what to buy when I 17 to read the little cards on the “Giving Trees”. One was for a little girl, four years old, and all she 18 for Christmas was a doll. So I took the card off the tree and 19 the doll for her. We have so much and she doesn't have anything.”

    I never felt so 20 as I did that day.

    Zigfried, a little mouse, blew his breath on the frosty window of the farmhouse and rubbed it to see the outside. Still nobody came. Maybe today, he thought 1 It was only a few days before Christmas and he was watching for a miracle (奇迹).

    This farmhouse had been 2 too long. It needed a family. Zigfried's 3 made a noise. He realized that he hadn't eaten anything since yesterday. He jumped from the windowsill (窗沿), grabbed a 4 from his home, and went next door to Farmer Mike's.

    Farmer Mike's house had been a great place for the little mouse 5the farmer married a wife who had a cat. Zigfried 6when he thought of it. He looked around cautiously as he 7 into the room where grain was stored and was quite 8as he filled his bag with wheat. He was turning to leave when suddenly he 9a hot breath about his ear. His heart beat 10, and without thinking he started to run and luckily 11 the cat's paws (爪子).

    The next afternoon Zigfried heard some good news: a 12family would be moving into the farmhouse soon. Zigfried's granny would arrive on Christmas Eve to 13 with him. He hoped that the family would come before his granny came. Before long, a car came 14 the road leading to the house, with butter sandwiches, cheese and chocolate.

    Zigfried's Christmas miracle did arrive!

    The house came 15 the next few days. Zigfried 16 every single hour of them. 17, the day before Christmas when he was drinking hot chocolate with a 18 smile at the door of his home, he heard the 19 of the children of the family about what they might get for Christmas. What? A cat? The 20froze on his face; his mouth fell wide open. After a long while, he at last found his voice: "Hey! Whose Christmas miracle is this?"

    Hailey is an ordinary nine-year-old girl, but her kindness is rather uncommon and awe-inspiring(令人惊叹的). The little girl has made it her task to help the 1 in her community by giving them a place to 2. While most other kids of her age are 3playing with toys, Hailey picks up 4 to build tiny shelters for people living on the streets.

    Hailey's kind spirits 5 four years ago, when she and her mother bought a homeless man a sandwich. She 6 that she wanted to do more in terms of providing 7 for the homeless. So she came up with the idea of starting a 8 to grow and donate fresh vegetables.

    "I was 9 that it would last a week," Hailey's mother told non-profit Together Rising. But it's been four years and she 10delivers food to the homeless constantly. " With her mother's help, Hailey 11 a grant(拨款) from Together Rising 12 she was awarded $ 3,000 to help her get started. "We can't think of a better 13 than our Hailey. She's proof that no person or act of kindness is too 14 to change the world," said Glennon Doyle Melton, founder of Together Rising.

    The wooden homes that Hailey is building will 15 a front door, windows and solar panels.

    16 , she does most of the work herself, under the guidance of her grandfather, who is a(n) 17. She is currently halfway through her first home, which she 18 to give to Edward, the homeless man who inspired her 19. Once she's done, Halley said she wants to 20building more sleeping shelters in Bremerton's Tent City.

    Being jobless for the last three months, I am upset nowadays. My son has lost his 1 from a good school and he might have to go to a less qualified school. I have moved from a spacious (宽敞的) apartment to a small one in order to 2 my living expenses. My wife has built extra stress. On top of that, my father in-law 3 a week ago, which has added fuel to fire, 4 our family into a more terrible state.

    In these circumstances I have two mental 5: either to feel upset and keep losing my peace of mind, or 6 my negative thoughts with super mental powers about self-confidence and consistency, and 7 applying for new jobs with positive attitude.

    I choose the second option because I believe that the pain I am 8 today will build up my 9 . My strengths will then increases my confidence and make me a good times make me a 10 man one day. I understand that good and bad stages are part of 11 . While good times make me happy, bad times 12 the 'inner' me.

    Two months later, 13 , I have finally landed on a job which is very exciting and offers a nice salary. Time has healed my wife's mental stress 14 the death of her father. My son has already been accepted by another good school because the admissions for new academic year were still 15 !

    As I am back on the track of normal life, I can 16 say that the most important things that helped me 17 the crisis (危机) were my consistent character of patience, and 18 attitude towards life. So, while I wish you all the best life can 19 you, I would highly recommend taking the same attitude towards life 20 you are trapped in any of such situations.

    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.