A Leap （跳跃）to Honor

    Leapirg on a narrow balance beam( 平衡木) is not easy. But Lola Water. a 13-year-old gymnast is an expert at it.

    To perfect her skills. Lola1 for four hours a day, five days a week. At the slate championships in March，she finished seventh  out of 16 girts. That's especially impressive. 2she is legaly blind, horn  with a rare  condition that causes her eyes to shift (转移)canstantly. She often sees double and can't3 how far away things  are.

    When she was little, her mom 4 even though she couldn't5, she was fearless. So her mom signed her up for gymnastics when she was three. She loved the 6 right away and gymnastics became her favorite.

    Though  learning gymnastics has been  more7for her than for some of  her tournaments( 锦际赛). she has never quit(放弃). She doesn't let her8 stop her from doing anything that she warts to. She likes the  determination (决心）it takes to do the sport. Her biggest 9 is the balance beam. Because she has double vision, she often sees two beams. She must use her sense of touch to help her during her routine. Sometimes she even clones her eyes. "You have to10your mind that it'll take you where you want to go”, says Lola.

    To be a top-level gymmast, one must be brave The beam is probably the most 11 for anyone because it's only four inches wide At the state competition, Lob didn 't12the beam, In fact, she got an 8.1 out of 10 一 her highest scone yet.

    Lola doesn't want to be 13, differently from the other girls un her team, At the competitions, the judges don't know about her vision14. She doesn't tell them, because she doesn't think they need to know. Her mom is amazed by her 15altitude.

    Loda never thinks about16. She is presently at level 7 while the highest is level 10 in gymnastics.  Her17is to reach level 9.She says she wants to be a gymnastics coach 1018what she s learned to other kids when she grew up.

    Lola is 19of all her hard work and  success. She says it has helped her overcome problems in her life

    Outside gymnastics, too. Her 20for others is “just believe yourself ”.

    Every time I passed boys who were playing basketball, I stopped to watch them silently.  But as a girl, I once thought that I could 1 play basketball.

    I like playing basketball though I'm not good at it. I've had a basketball 2 I was a child. At first, I could play freely because no one 3 when I was just a kid. But as I 4it seemed harder and harder for me to enjoy basketball. My parents did not 5 me play basketball at home.6when I went to play basketball with my friends, boys stared (盯着) at me as if I were7

    I was feeling 8 and had lost hope of playing basketball.9 something changed the first day of high school. I made some friends who also10playing basketball. One of them told me with a smile, “Go your own11 let others talk.” This girl would always play basketball with me. Even the boy who sat next to me in class talked about 12 with me almost every day.

    I was encouraged by them. Confidence (信心)13to my heart. I am ready to stand up and play. Basketball has become an important part of my 14. Through basketball, not only do I feel happy and confident, but also 15a lot from others.

    I've heard the NBA star Tracy McGrady say, “Nothing is impossible.” It is from an advertisement on TV. I have 16to realize that life is just 17 playing basketball. You should have an aim (目标). After that, just be confident and 18 going. Never give up and you'll 19it sooner or later.

    I love the motto of the NBA. It can20my strong feelings for basketball, “I love this game!”

    There was a little, but always strange girl. Everything was bad for her. She wished to meet an enchantress (女巫) that would turn her life a 1tale.

    One day an enchantress came and said that one of her wishes would 2 The girl became very happy at first, but then she started to think that she had a lot of wishes and all of them were 3 for her. She could not 4 just one. Then the 5 enchantress that she would help her realize one wish every day. The girl became 6—now all her dreams will become realities.

    From that day on, she was waiting every morning with joy and 7. Then as days passed, the dreams became real ones.... But soon the little girl realized that 8 of the wishes d give her joy and happiness which she 9for. Many wishes brought her disappointment, and some 10 a pain. Almost every dream was an empty little girl's caprice (任性). Though being 11 she suddenly found that she did not 12 this. Soon she started to 13 dreams. She was afraid to 14 every day, waiting for the realization of another wish. Crying, she asked the enchantress to 15 only one her dream-to live as she lived 16and enjoy life.

    The good enchantress had 17 upon the little girl. She waved her magic wand and disappeared. The girl was happy 18 she knew that now she would carefully seek for her one big 19 dream, not wasting time with short-term20 quite unnecessary wishes.

    I had worried myself sick over Simon's mother coming to see me. I was a new 1 , and I gave an honest account of the students' work. In Simon's case, the grades were awfully low. He couldn't read his own handwriting. 2 he was a bright student. He discussed adult subjects with nearly adult comprehension. His work in no way reflected his 3 .So when Simon's mother entered the room, my palms(手掌心) were sweating. I was completely 4for her kisses on both my cheeks. “I came to thank you ,” she said, surprising me beyond speech.5 me, Simon had become a different person. He talked of how he 6 me, he had begun to make friends, and for the first time in his twelve years, he had 7 spent an afternoon at a friend's house. She wanted to tell me how grateful she was for the 8 son. She kissed me again and left.

    I had nurtured(培养) in her I sat, stunned ( 惊 呆), for about half an hour , 9 what had just happened. How did I make such a life-changing difference to that boy without 10 knowing it? What I finally came to 11 was one day, several months before, when some students were 12 reports in the front of the class. Jeanne spoke13 ,and to encourage her to raise her voice, I had said, “Speak up. Simon's the expert on this. He is the 14 one you have to convince, and he can't hear you in the 15 of the room.” That was it. From that day on, Simon had sat up straighter, paid more attention, 16 more, and became happy. And it was all because he 17 to be the last kid in the last row. The boy who most needed 18was the one who took the last seat that day.

    It taught me the most 19 lesson over the years of my teaching career, and I'm thankful that it came 20 and positively. A small kindness can indeed make a difference.

    I'm heading for a week­long break with my friends, Gino and Connie, in Hawaii. I'm so 1that I can hardly type, not only for the wonders awaiting us, but also for the pleasure of 2 out with my friends.

    Isn't it 3 amazing how certain friends enter your life? I've known Gino and Connie for five 4 now. 5, I'd just got a job in a company.  I'd questioned whether I was making the right 6 or if it was really the best position for me. My 7 was to work as a magazine or newspaper editor. 8, something about the company felt right — like I belonged there somehow.

    The company was 9 fast. Every week brought new co­workers, most of them around my age. I met Gino who'd just 10 a week earlier. I hoped we'd become 11. We shared the same sense of humor. One month later, Connie 12 the company, too.

    It's been two years since I 13 that company. Gino and Connie no longer work there, either. But our friendship is going 14. We still get together for dinner and chat over group text daily. I never thought, five years ago, that we'd 15 together in Hawaii one day!

    The job that wasn't my dream job turned out to be the best job I could have ever found. The majority of the friends I have today came from that 16. Sometimes I 17 what I was doing there and 18 my writing dreams would ever come true. But I can 19 imagine my life without those friends.

    Now I can't wait to see what is 20 for us — who knows who we'll meet!

One sunny afternoon in the park, I witnessed a remarkable scene. An elderly gentleman was standing by the side of a path, looking confused and lost. Just at that moment, a kind- hearted young girl approached him. She asked him gently what was wrong and listened patiently as he struggled to explain.

Without hesitation, the girl took his hand and slowly guided him along the path, chatting with him to ease his anxiety. They walked together until they reached the place the old man was supposed to be. The old man smiled with thankfulness and relief.

After helping the old man, the girl didn't just leave. She spent some more time with him, sharing some interesting stories and making him laugh. The old man's eyes sparkled with joy, and it was clear that this interaction had brightened his day. The girl's kindness seemed to have an effect, as other people in the park also noticed and were inspired by her actions.

I continued to observe as the girl then decided to stay with the old man for a while longer. They sat on a bench together, and the girl began to tell him about her own life, her dreams, and her adventures. The old man listened attentively, nodding and smiling from time to time. It was a beautiful sight to behold, this unlikely pair sharing such a genuine and heartwarming connection.

This encounter made me reflect on the importance of kindness in our society. In a world that can often seem cold and hurried, acts like the girl's are like the tower of light, showing us the way to a more empathetic（同情的）and caring existence. It also made me think about how we all have the potential to make a difference in someone else's life, no matter how small the act may be.

Now, whenever I recall this scene, it warms my heart and reminds me to be more willing to offer a helping hand, to spread kindness wherever I go, and to believe in the goodness that lies within each of us.