That holiday morning I didn't have to attend school. Usually, on holidays, Mother 1  me to sleep in. And I would certainly take full advantage of it. On this particular morning,  2, I felt like getting up early.

        I stood by my window overlooking the 3, having nothing better to do. But as it turned out, I was soon to learn about something  4  in life.

        As I watched several people go by, get into their cars and go off, I  5an old man on a bicycle with a bucket on its  6 and a basket of rags and bottles on its back-carriage. He  7  from one car to another,  washing and cleaning them. From the water on the ground, it seemed that he had already  8  washing and cleaning about a dozen or more cars. He must have begun to work quite early in the morning.

        Several thoughts  9my mind as I watched him work. He wash't well-dressed. He had on a pair of shorts and a(n)  10  T-shirt. The bicycle he rode was not by any means the kind modern  11 would want to be seen riding on. But he seemed 12  with life. There he was, working hard at his small business,  13at passers by and stopping to chat now and then  14elderly men and women on their way to the market nearby,

        There was a noticeable touch of  15 in the way he seemed to be doing things  16 the  windscreen(挡风玻璃), then standing back to admire it; scrubbing(擦净)the wheels and  17, standing back to see what they look like after the scrub.

        It was a  18 to learn, I felt. At no age need one have to beg for a  19 if one has good health and is  willing to work hard. For a while I felt  20 of myself. Young as I am—just sixteen, and there was this old man who must have been usefully engaged perhaps before the sun appeared above the horizon.

      On a hot summer day in America, a little boy decided to go for a swim in the old swimming hole behind his house. He dived into the cool water, Not 1that as he swam towards the middle of the lake, a crocodile (鳄鱼) was swimming toward him.

      His mother 2was looking out of the window and saw the two as they got closer and closer. In great 3 , she ran toward the water, 4 to her son as loudly as she could. Hearing her voice, the little boy became5 and made a U-turn to swim to his mother. 6   , it was too late. Just as he reached her, the  7  reached him. From the shore, the mother  8 her little boy by the arms just as the crocodile snatched his legs. That began an incredible tug-of-war (拔河) between the 9  The crocodile was much 10  than the mother, but the mother wouldn't  11   . A farmer 12 to drive by, heard their screams, raced from his truck, took aim and  13  the crocodile.

    14 , after weeks and weeks in the hospital, the little boy survived. His 15 were extremely scarred(留下疤痕) by the attack of the animal. And, on his arms, were deep scratches(抓痕) where his mother's fingernails dug into his flesh in her effort to hang on to the son she loved.

       The newspaper reporter, who  16  the boy, asked if he would show him his scars. The boy lifted his legs. And then, with obvious  17 , he said to the reporter, “But look at my arms. I have great scars on my arms, too. I have them 18 my Mom wouldn't let go.”

Never judge another person's 19 , because you don't know 20they were made.

You Did More Than Carry My books

    Mark was walking home from school one day when he noticed the boy ahead of him had dropped all of the books he was carrying, along with a baseball bat and several other things. Mark 1down and helped the boy pick up these articles. 2 they were going the same way, he helped to carry some of them for him. As they walked Mark 3 the boy's name was Bill, that he 4 computer games, baseball and history, that he was having a lot of 5  with his other subjects and that he had just broken 6 with his girlfriend.

    They arrived at Bill's home first and Mark was 7 in for a Coke and to watch some television. The afternoon passed 8 with a few laughs and some shared small talk, and then Mark went home. They 9to see each other around school, had lunch together once or twice, and then both ended up from the same high school. Just three weeks before 10 , Bill asked Mark if they 11 talk.

    Bill 12 him of the day years ago when they had first met. “Do you 13wonder why I was carrying so many things home that day?” asked Bill. “You see, I 14 out my locker because I didn't want to leave a mess(脏乱)15anyone else. I had planned to run away and I was going home to 16 my things. But after we spent some time together 17 and laughing, I realized that 18 I had done that, I would have19 a new friend and missed all the fun we would have together. So you see, Mark, when you picked up my books that day, you did a lot more. You 20 my life.”

    The first time 10-year-old Jordie Rowland came into the barber shop, it was a disaster.

    Jordie, who has autism (自闭症), 1 with his parents to run outside the moment he entered the shop. I ended up 2 around the shop with him that day. I got in a few cuts 3 stopped the haircut when I saw Jordie was 4. Cutting hair can be 5 for some children with autism. Jordie was no different. I felt I'd 6 and it made me 7 to learn more about autism so I could connect with him and take away his 8.

    After the first 9 haircut, I suggested to Jordie's parents they bring him back every two weeks at closing time. That went on for a few months. His hair was long. I could 10 cut it properly. I'd get a couple of cuts in, and then he'd just go crazy. That was a really 11 time. But I knew we had to just keep going.

    I even went to his house to give it a try. No 12. Then the owner of the barber shop 13 me for allowing a customer to come in after closing time. Discouraged, I 14 that job, and soon opened my own shop. Every two weeks, Jordie would 15 my shop after it was closed. This lasted about eight months.

    A few weeks ago, we made 16. I sang "The Wheels on the Bus" to him. I didn't know he was 17 nursery rhymes (儿歌). I was just trying to 18 him. He looked at me as if he were mesmerized (迷住). I gave him a full haircut for the first time. I realized our slow, two-year effort had 19.

    Two weeks later, Jordie let me do it again. I often don't charge them the cost of the haircut. Maybe the reason I do something like this is to increase my 20 of the kids like him.

    We have five fantastic children. As they've grown older, from high school to college and so on, we found ourselves cleaning out our home of furniture only to replace it with something new. We had this living room set (一组) 1 a sofa, love seat and chair go 2 a couple of the kids, dragging it up the stairs to their third floor apartments and back down again to the next apartment. Our son was the last to have the set when 3 he asked for a place to 4 it because he was going out of town for a semester. We told him we would 5 it for him in our garage. So we picked the furniture up and 6 it back to the house.

    One day, while at 7, I heard a couple of people talking in the hallway. A mother and her two children were 8 out of their own house by her husband, with 9 but the clothes on their backs. Some warmhearted people found them a place to stay, but no belongings, clothes, food, or furniture.

    Our colleagues and I 10 all we could to help her. I went to the store and bought some clothes for the children and some 11 essentials. I came home that day after work and looked at the furniture in the garage sitting there, 12. I called my son and told him what I wanted to do. He agreed.

    The next 13 was to the mother of two. She came to my house within an hour to pick up the furniture and the bag of clothes. She said she would 14 the furniture as soon as she would be able to.

    I looked at her and said, "15 you are done with the furniture, give it to someone else in16."

    She cried, 17 by the generosity and thanked everyone greatly for all that 18 did to help. It makes me so happy to know that the 19 that grew with our family was being 20 to good use.

    Nick was not the kind of boy I had expected to spend my summer with. I was hoping to have a1the summer before my busy senior year, but my mother asked me to do her a2. One of her colleagues needed a full-time3. "You planned to volunteer at the local hospital, why not volunteer to4Nick instead?" Then she told me that this six-year-old boy was not a5 child.

    Nick was a lovely little boy who suffered from many disorders. Normal day-care centers would not6him. As a baby, he had serious ear infections which left him with equilibrium(平衡) problems.

    He couldn't7or run properly. I was8if I was to take the job when my mother9.

    "Don't you want to be a nurse in the future? I doubt if you even have the10."

    Then I told her I was11for the job.

    The day started at 7:00 a.m. Nick was my wake-up call! With so much energy and very little 12, he was quite a mix.

    At the park, when he saw all the other children play on the jungle gym and swings(秋千), the boy's face 13up—How he wished he belonged to the group of his age! You would think it would be 14to get a child to go down a slide. Believe me, it wasn't! It took time, a lot of time. But with patience and support. Nick took one step up the slide each day. We worked together to face his 15and gradually he got closer to taking the slide of his life.

    Halfway through the summer, he16it to the top of the slide. With my arms holding him tightly, we flew down the slide! I waited for his17. After realizing that he was safe and sound, he gave me a big18and asked, "May I go down again, alone?"

    I had never been happier in my life when I saw this little child climb the ladder and enjoy what other children19for granted.

    This20child taught me that being a nurse means respect, kindness and patience.