I do not know why I came to the decision to become a loser, but I know I made the choice at a young age. Sometime in the middle of fourth grade, I stopped 1. By the time I was in seventh grade, I was your2degenerate (颓废): lazy, rebellious, and disrespectful. I had lost all social 3 I terminally (不可救药的) followed, what was fashionable.

    Not long after that, I dropped out of school and 4 my downward spiral. Hard physical labor was the5for the choices I made as an adolescent. At the age of twenty-one, I was6 lost and using drugs as a way to deal with the fact that I was uneducated and7 in a dead-end job carrying roof materials up a ladder all day.

    But now I believe in do-overs, in the8 to do it all again. And I believe that do-overs can be made at any point in your life, if you have the right 9 Mine came from a10source.

    It was September 21, 2002, when my son Blake was born. It's funny that after a life of 11responsibility, now I was in charge of something so 12Over the years, as I grew into the title of Dad, I began to learn something about myself13 Blake and I were both learning to walk, talk, work, and play for the first time. I began my do-over.

    It took me almost three years to learn 14to read. I started with my son's books. Over and over, I practiced reading books to him15 I remembered all the words in every one of them. I began to wonder if it was possible for me to go back to school. I knew I wanted to be a good role model,16 after a year-and-a-half and a lot of hard work, I passed my GED test on my son's fourth birthday. This may not sound like 17and I am not trying to get praise for doing something that should have been done in the first place, but all things considered it was one of the18days in my life. Today, I am a full-time college student, studying to become a sociologist.

    Growing up, I19 heard these great turn-around stories of triumph over shortcomings. But I never thought they applied to me. Now I believe it is a (an)20anyone can make: To do it all over again.

    I work as a volunteer for an organization that helps the poor in Haiti. Recently I took my son Barrett there for a week, hoping to 1him.

    Before setting out, I told Barrett this trip would be tiring and2.For the first two days, he said almost nothing. I worried the trip was too 3for a 17-year-old. Then, on Day three, as we were 4over high rocky mountains, he turned to me and grinned(咧嘴笑), “Pretty hard.”

    After that there was no turning back. A five-year-old girl, wearing a dress several sizes 5large and broken shoes, followed Barrett around, mesmerized(着迷). He couldn't stop6 Later he said7“I wish I could speak French.” I was8-this from a boy who hated and 9French classes throughout school.

    Usually silent, he 10Gaby, our host, and kept asking questions about the country and its people. He blossomed(活泼起来).

11the moment that really took12breath away occurred in a village deep in the mountains. I was13a woman villager for an article. 135 centimeters tall, she was small in figure but strong in14.Through determination, she had learned to read and write, and 15to become part of the leadership of the16.

    Learning her story, Barrett was as 17as I by this tiny woman's achievements. His eyes were wet and there was a18of love and respect on his face. He had finally understood the importance of my work.

    When leaving for home, Barrett even offered to stay19as a volunteer. My insides suddenly felt struck. This20achieved all I'd expected. Soon he will celebrate his 18th birthday. He'll be a man.

    This is really simple but I was caught off guard（ 措 手 不 及 ）. As my son and I were1 a restaurant today, I 2  the door for several older couples going in and out. Just as I was about to let it go, I saw someone coming around the corner so I 3. She saw my little boy and told me to go first. I told her to  4because I wasn't in any 5—we're still technically on vacation. 6, we'd had our lunch.

    I've held doors 7  I was a kid because that's what my brother  8  me in and now I just do it out of 9  . Maybe people will say thanks, but most of them 10 blow past like the world 11 them something or whatever excuse they make for ignoring that  12.

    The girl, however, 13 a big smile, saying "Thank you". It's a tiny thing and she probably didn't even14 its effect. But I could suppose she  15  appreciated it. It wasn't until she was in 16  and walking past that I found she was a beautiful girl, so I'm not the first person to open a door for her. I just got back from Florida, was dirty and 17  and hadn't even showered yet. I am 99% sure it had nothing to do with my  18. I can only assume she was actually  19.

    Anyway, this probably wouldn't mean anything to most people but I valued her sincere20passing.

    As I sat motionless on the steps of the pool, watching everyone else swim back and forth, I realized that I had spent most of my life watching others enjoy themselves. It was then that I 1a little girl staring at me with a look of confusion. I smiled at her, hoping to 2 the ice by talking to her. Unfortunately, my 3 failed and she just kept on staring. My 4 increased as a little boy swam up to me and said, "I feel sorry for you."

    After the 5 by chance, a thought struck me. I had to change 6 the world viewed me. Because it was children who stared at me the most, I decided to write a children's book that taught them about 7 in a fun way. This is when KatGirl, a super hero in a 8 who helps children that are being bullied, came into my mind.

    I quickly 9 inside my apartment and began creating the story. As I wrote each word, I could 10 my future as a world-famous author and public speaker. My excitement 11 like wildfire. Over the next two years, the story 12 many changes before it saw the world in the spring of 2011. My insistence 13 paid off.

    One day I was invited to speak to the students at a neighboring school. I confidently wheeled into a classroom filled with students who 14 at me just like the little girl in the pool. "How do you feel when you see me?" I asked them. The kids bravely 15, "I feel sorry for you."

    I opened my book and started reading. Immediately I noticed the children's stares turned to 16. "How do you feel when you see me?" I asked again. Without 17 they replied, "You are so cool! Does your 18 fly too?" I just smiled, "No, not yet, but maybe some day." I knew in my heart that this was 19. The past two years had proven to me that with 20 anything is possible.

    Last winter was extremely cold and it was also a difficult time for me. A(n) 1 injury happened to me and it might keep me in bed for several months, just in time for the New Year. But how could I feel the 2 when the snow was so heavy and I had months of physical 3 ahead?

    One day I was doing my housework 4 there was a tap against the window from a branch of a fruit tree. On hearing this, I began to 5 the fall of 1995 when somebody placed a pipe from my pump next to the 6. The earth was so wet that it 7 immediately with most its bare roots upward. Seeing this, my mother 8 to pull it out, but I refused, 9 the direction of its strong holding of the earth, and said, "It is 10 of a chance to survive." With tools, we 11 dry soil around the tree and put up some supports into the ground, making it 12 upright.

    Several months had passed before I could be 13 of it. Surprisingly, when spring returned, my "rescue stick" had grown some leaves and many 14. In 2009 it had grown into a towering tree. What a(n) 15 miracle of life!

    The day before the New Year, the 16 at the window was continuing, as if to remind me to look up and appreciate its 17 life. That night I slept peacefully having a(n) 18. In the dream some flowers were coming out 19. The next morning I stood against the window. 20 the window was the tree bursting with life.

Some Ohio high school students have become winners in a national contest (竞赛) after inventing a mobile phone app that helps needy families find local food pantries (公益食品仓库).

And someday the teens, who are students at Ross High School in Ross Township, may be selling the app to food pantries and food banks across America.

The app was created as part of a computer science class — coordinated (协调) by Butler Tech career school system at the high school. Three students, Jacob Kahmann, Gunner Nonnamaker and Kyle Inderhees, recently were visited by Congressman Warren Davidson, who praised their work. Davidson lauded the teens for creating "this app to set the standard for efficient food collection and distribution (分发)".

Butler Tech IT Instructor Tom O'Neill said the students' app includes characteristics that help users locate the nearest food pantry and improve food collection processes, and that the national contest provides a real-life learning chance for his students.

The students are continuing to make additions to the app and are working on turning it into a product, said O'Neill, who in recent years has helped many Ross High School teens win national honors for their computer-science-based inventions.

"The teachers and students in the Ross School District continue to amaze me with their future-thinking and creation," said Superintendent Scott Gates. "Our students are not only thinking about careers, they are thinking about problems they want to change, solve or improve. The app that was created will make serving a population in need more efficient."