Years ago, acritical event occurred in my life that would change it forever. I met Kurt Kampmeir of Success Motivation Incorporation for breakfast. While we were1 , Kurt asked me, " John, what is your 2for personal growth?"

     Never at a loss for words, I tried to find things in my life that might3 for growth. I told him about the many activities in which I was4 . And I went into a 5about how hard I worked and the gains I was making. I must have talked for ten minutes. Kurt  6patiently, but then he 7 smiled and said, “You don't have a personal plan for growth, do you?”

    “No, I8.

   “You know,” Kurt said simply, “growth is not a(n)9 process.”

     And that's when it10me. I wasn't doing anything11 to make myself better. And at that moment, I made the 12 : I will develop and follow a personal growth plan for my 13.

    That night, I talked to my wife about my 14 with Kurt and what I had learned. I15her the workbook and tapes Kurt was selling. We16 that Kurt wasn't just trying to make a sale. He was offering a 17 for us to change our lives and achieve our dreams.

     Several important things happened that day. First, we decided to18 the resources. But more importantly, we made a commitment to19 together as a couple. From that day on, we learned together, traveled together, and sacrificed together. It was a  20 decision. While too many couples grow apart, we were growing together.

    On a sunny day, Linda and Jack were to try the new boat on the river.Linda jumped out of bed excitedly, got dressed quickly and woke up her brother Jack.

    After1Linda and Jack arrived at the riverbank and2the new blue boat waiting for them.They got into the boat and packed their picnic under the3.Linda started the engine and4they went into the wide, brown and unknown5of the river.

    Suddenly, they found the boat sounded6round a bend in the river.On the distant sandbank they saw a long dark creature7in the sun. It opened one eye at them and then suddenly disappeared into the8.

    “What was that?” shouted Jack.

    “It looked like a crocodile to me!” said Linda.“We'd better be9.”Just as they came round the next10, the engine11and came to a stop.Linda12to start the engine again. But it wouldn't start. They were13.

    “Let's get the wooden oars,” said Jack. “Maybe we can 14 the boat free.

    They tried but failed.

    “We're stuck on a sandbank,” said Linda. “We'll just have to sit here having our15and wait for the water to16.”

    “It's boring!” said Jack.

    Suddenly, they felt the boat move .It moved slowly off the sandbank. And the engine started again. Just at the same time they noticed a black17by the boatside and in no time it disappeared in the brown water ahead.

    They18heir journey down the river. It was so exciting .

    At noon they saw a small river19the main river. It wasn't on the map . “Let's20there!” said Linda.

    The boat turned and went into the smaller channel .On both sides grew thick unknown trees.

    It was January 2000, and I had just finished the final term of my year abroad in Auckland, New Zealand. Warm feelings and happy thoughts1 into my mind. I began thinking about the 2 I was due to take with my friends over the summer, across New Zealand.

    I went shopping for gifts to take back to my family in Malaysia. Then I made my way home. I have always been very careful of3 safety. But, for some reason, on that day I quickly ran across the 4 without looking. At that moment, a 5 turned the corner. I was in the driver's6 spot so he did not see me, nor I him. I was hit by the minibus and was 7 under its wheels.

    When opening my8, I learned that it took 15 minutes to. 9 me from the wheels. A(n)10 team from a local hospital had to lift the minibus off me with their hands.  A tourist in the crowd had come to help, holding my hand and 11 me in the ambulance(救护车). When I arrived at the hospital, 12told me my injuries were life-threatening. They also told me there was a13 chance I could never walk again.

    However, although I14a lot, I was not paralyzed(瘫瘓的). It took me six months to15. I was sad to miss out on the trip across New Zealand but my friends comforted me a lot. 16I was able to attend my graduation, crossing the stage with walking sticks; it didn't matter, because I was just happy to be17. The accident changed my18; it made me think about the terrible things that could have happened. It regularly19me to step back and think twice about my problems, to be20for the second chance I got at life.

    One of the most inspiring quotes (名言) I ever heard was by Brian Tracy. He said: "The 1 between successful people and unsuccessful people is that successful people 2 many more times than unsuccessful people."

    I deeply understood the 3 of the quote soon after my fist book was published.

    I was living in Atlanta at the time and 4 my fist signing sale for my new book at the phoenix and Dragon, the largest bookstore in the city. Although a nice sign was placed outside the room 5 images of both me and my book, The 9 Insights of the Wealthy Soul, not a single customer entered the room. 6 each minute passed, I became increasingly 7.

    At 6:25 pm, just before the store's 8, I began to get myself ready to leave. At that moment, just when I couldn't fell any 9, a middle-aged couple walked into the room. I managed to 10 my emotions and introduced myself and my book.

    The couple turned the pages each other, and the husband 11 to his wife. She then told me, "I think we'll get the book."

    Despite the impulse (冲动) to jump 12, and hold their hands to thank them for being my 13 readers, I realized the woman was trying to say something else.

    "The 14 we're buying it is that our son died two years ago," she said. "Maybe your book will help us 15 it."

    At that moment, I knew if never sold a copy of the book, my four years of 16 had been meaningless.

    Although I would have many more challenging years 17 my book became a bestseller, this couple's story was all the 18 I needed at that point to keep me 19.

    Thanks to them, I would realize that the greatest of lives are made all in the same way: One challenge … one challenge … one difficulty … one step …and one small 20 at a time.

I believe in the power of science fiction,not just for its capacity to transform dreams into reality, but also for its power to bond together those who share a common vision of the future. For me, that's true for my relationship with my dad. Some fathers and sons bond over sports, fishing or hunting, but my dad and I bond over Star Trek. We tried a trip to Disney World, but one of my earliest memories wasn't Mickey, but a Klingon battle cruiser（巡洋舰）on the screen.
Over the years, nearly every setting and situation has become far away for my dad and me. When it's warm at night, we're not driving along some dark streets in Indiana,but.going at a slow speed with stars dimly shining. Both of us are thinking of them,without needing to say a word. All these visions of other universes have together created a private universe for my dad and me.

Gene Roddenberry, creator of Star Trek,once said, "Science fiction is a way of thinking，a way of logic that bypasses（绕过）a lot of nonsense. It allows people to look directly at important subjects." A lifetime of science fiction has influenced more than just my relationship with my dad, but has also helped me shape my own hopes for the future.I'm now a science writer.

Yes,science fiction has made me into a nerd. And it also has been a source of joy for my family,making me an optimist while enabling me to think critically about the danger of technology.thank those authors who have shared their visions, the world and my family are better for it. Thank my dad, who is both the best storyteller and the best man i have ever known because he helped me realize the truth of Tennyson's words," since i dipped into the future,i saw the vision of the world,and all the wonders that would be.

Volunteering has been a way of life for me for the past five years since I was fifteen.

In 2020 I1 with a newly founded social enterprise, which conducted cooking lessons for visually impaired (视障) trainee2 . I absolutely loved it as it involved meaningful 3 with people and I was fully4 throughout the entire time I was there. This was unlike some other types of volunteering, which may involve mostly behind-the-scenes work that can get5 after a while.

We called ourselves "sighted assistants" and each of us was6 with a visually impaired trainee chef. As a volunteer, I would walk with the trainee to the Enabling Village7 , and then ensure their 8 as they learned to cook a new dish. This included helping them9 the position of the sink, ensuring proper use of electrical appliances,10 boiling and hot objects, as well as being careful with knives among other things.

Being there with them made me truly11 appreciate how difficult life can be when you are partially sighted or completely blind. Every tiny task12 requires massive effort. There are so many people with visual impairments, I realized13 . While medicine still does not have the power to cure all of these conditions, we are never short of ways to empower these individuals by making life14 easier and 15 more meaningful for them.