Years ago when I volunteered at a homeless shelter, I talked with a boy, Albert. He said he liked my1 “Do you want to see mine?” he said, 2 his leg. He was barefoot. He said he'd been meaning to pick up a pair but hadn't gotten one. I felt a 3 feeling in my stomach.

    A few days later I was at home helping to 4 my daughter. I smiled when I 5 the socks over her feet. At that moment, Albert flashed in my 6.

    At noon, I went to a department store and 7 a shopping cart with socks — nothing 8, just white cotton men's socks.

    The next morning, I drove to the Palisades Park, which is a common overnight—destination for 9 individuals,

    I grabbed one of the 10 from my trunk and walked across the grass. It was dark out. It was a beautiful feeling to 11 before the sun and most living things.

    I headed fro a group of three men. Two were asleep and the third was digging through his shopping cart. It was loaded with plastic bottles and some clothes, and a few books — most 12, everything he owned in this world. As I walked toward him, he turned and 13 me, perhaps questioning my intention.

    “I thought you might 14 some new socks, ” I told him, handing him a pair. He looked 15 at first but took them, smiled and said, “Thank you.” I gave two more 16 for his partners.

    I 17. After 20 minutes, I returned for the second bag. An hour later, I 18 all the socks. Most people were sleeping, and I felt like a(n) 19 Santa Claus. I knew when they woke up they would find a very meaningful 20. That gave me an amazing feeling.

    My husband, Tom, has always been good with animals, but I was still amazed when he befriended a female grouse (松鸡). It's 1 for a grouse to have any contact (接触) with people. In fact, they're hard to spot, 2 they usually fly off when they hear humans approaching.

    This grouse came into our lives in 3.Tom was working out in the field when he 4her walking around at the edge of the field. She was 5 unafraid and seemed to be6about what he was doing.

    Tom saw the 7 bird several times, and she got more comfortable around him. We quickly grew 8 of the bird and decided to call her Mildred.

    One day, as Tom was working, Mildred came within a few feet of him to watch. Tom 9he didn't see her and kept working to see what she would do next.

    Apparently, she didn't like to be 10 . She'd run up and peck (啄) at Tom's hands, then11 off to see what he would do. This went on for about 20 minutes, until Mildred became tired of the 12 and left.

    As spring went and summer came, Mildred started to 13 more and more often. 14Mildred felt comfortable enough to jump up on Tom's leg and stay long enough for me to get a 15 of the two of them together. This friendly grouse soon felt 16 not just with our family, but with anybody who walked or drove by.

    When hunting season opened, we put a 17 at the end of our driveway asking 18not to shoot our pet grouse. My father, who lived down the road, 19warned people not to shoot her. 20, hunters would stop and take pictures, because they had never seen anything like her.

    As the saying goes, roses given, fragrance in hand. I am always in the 1 of giving money to every beggar or homeless person I pass by. My friends say it is not good to 2. We may come across beggars or homeless people begging every day and all beggars have their ability to survive. It 3 them that I never listen.

On a 4day, my friend and I were walking to the bus stop 5 I passed a beggar lady. I had seen her several times before and had always given her a few 6. That day, I gave her 2 Euros. I was waiting for the bus and reading a book when I 7 to see that lady standing in front of me. She 8 me a piece of paper covered in a plastic bag to prevent it from getting9. She stood there, looking at me 10. Putting away my book, I took the paper, which 11 she and her family had to 12 their country because of floods, and she was 13 to support them. She had got a bit of money, but she needed five 14 Euros to get home. I 15 into my pockets and found 20 cents. My friend 16 a 5 Euro note. I asked her to give it to the lady, and said that I would 17 the next day. When she got the money, the lady hugged us and said thanks again and again, and went on her way. Later on the bus, I wondered where her home was and 18 she had gotten to this country. In her story, I felt that my friend and I would always remain part of it as the 19, who helped her get home on a rainy day. But for me, helping a stranger did bring me happiness, giving me a pleasant 20 .

    Sometimes people come into your life and you know right away that they are meant to be there.

    They serve some sort of 1 in order to teach a lesson or help 2 who you are or who you want to become. You never know 3 these people may be — your roommate, neighbor, professor, long-lost friend, lover or even a complete 4, but when you keep an eye on them, you know at that very moment that they will 5 your life in some great way.

    And sometimes things happen to you and they may seem 6, horrible and unfair at the time, but 7 solving those problems, you would never have realized your potential, strength, willpower or heart. Everything happens for a(n) 8. Nothing happens by 9 or by means of good or bad luck. Illness, injury, love, lost moments of true greatness and stupidity—all occur to 10 the limits of your soul. Without these small tests life would be like a smoothly paved, straight, flat road to nowhere, safe and comfortable but dull and 11.

    The people you meet who affect your life and the successes and 12 you experience — they are the ones that create who you are. Even the 13 experiences can be learned from.

    If someone hurts you, betrays you or breaks your heart, 14 them, for they have helped you learn about 15 and the importance of being 16 about whom you open your heart to. If someone loves you, love them back 17, not only because they love you, but because they are teaching you to love and open your heart and eyes to things you would without them.

    18 have seen or felt Make every day 19. Appreciate every moment and take from it everything that you possibly can, for you may never be able to experience it again.

    "People are like tea bags — you have to put them in hot water before you know how 20 they are."

    It happened when our grandchild, Anne, was three years old. My husband, Paul, asked her if there was anything she wanted to plant in our garden. She had an answer—Fritos (油炸玉米饼).

    "Anne, Fritos might not 1 in this soil," he said. But Anne looked at her grandfather and said that if the other 2 could grow, so would Fritos. Paul 3 this in the simplest way possible. He sent Anne running to the house for Fritos.

    That evening, I asked Paul, "Are you 4?"

    "She will forget it," he 5. The next day, Anne asked again. To gain time, Paul said it would 6 two weeks for Fritos to come out. That should be plenty of time for her to forget, he thought.

    For the next two weeks, she arrived every evening to 7 her "Frito land". Anne grew more 8. But with each passing day, Paul became more and more 9. By the 13th day, he had 10 a plan, and the next morning we began to work.

    We planted two plants where the Fritos were 11. Then we began the difficult task of tying Fritos around the leaves of the plants. At last, that was quite a 12 off our mind. Anne ran straight to the garden as 13. We were shocked when she shouted, "Grandpa! They're up! The Fritos came up!"

    The story was repeated several times. When Anne was in second grade, it was finally 14 until the day her teacher talked about the topic of 15. As part of the lesson, the teacher asked each child to 16 something that grows in a garden. You can 17 what Anne said!

    Anne's parents 18 it was time to tell the truth. Their daughter sat very still while they talked, and when they finished, she remained 19. Suddenly, Anne burst out 20 and said, "That's the best joke Grandpa ever played on me."

Hawthorne worked as a clerk in a small company. He suffered a heavy blow when he lost his job. His boss had spoken 1, "Your services are no longer needed." Hawthorne left the building filled with despair. By the time he reached home, he was in deep 2. When he entered his house, he blurted out(脱口而出)to his wife Sophia, "I lost my job. I am a complete failure." A tense silence followed. 3, a smile crept across Sophia's face. "What great news!" she responded, "Now you can write the book you have always wanted to write."

"But I have no job and no prospect of a job," he objected completely without hope. "If I 4 to be an author, then what will we 5? Where will the money come from?"

Sophia took her husband by the hand and 6 him to the kitchen. Opening a drawer, she took out a box that was full of 7. "Where on earth did you get this?" Hawthorne asked. "To whom does it 8?"

"It's ours!" Sophia replied. "I always knew that one day you would become a great writer 9 you were given the chance. From the money you gave me for housekeeping every week, I have 10 as much as I could so you would have your chance. Now there is enough to 11 us a whole year. "

What a(n) 12! What a wife! The 13 husband did concentrate on writing that year, and the novel he wrote became a literary masterpiece. The book is The Scarlet Letter. Sophia had an even greater 14,—she turned Nathaniel Hawthorne from a poor clerk into a world famous 15.