So many of us hold on to little resentments that may have stemmed from an argument, a misunderstanding, or some other painful event. Stubbornly, we wait for someone else to reach out to us―believing this is the only way we can forgive or rekindle(重新点燃) a friendship or family relationship.

    An acquaintance of mine whose health isn't very good, recently told me that she hasn't spoken to her son in almost three years. "Why not" I asked. She said that she and her son had had a disagreement about his wife and that she wouldn't speak to him again unless he called first. When I suggested that she be the one to reach out, she resisted initially and said, "I can't do that. He's the one who should apologize." She was literally(简直) willing to die before reaching out to her only son. After a little gentle encouragement, however, she did decide to be the first one to reach out. To her amazement, her son was grateful for her willingness to call and sincerely said sorry to her. As is usually the case when someone takes the chance and reaches out, everyone wins.

    Whenever we hold on to our anger we turn "small thing" into "big thing" in our minds. We start to believe that our positions are more important than our happiness. They are not. If you want to be a more peaceful person you must understand that being right is to let go, and reach out. Let other people be right. This doesn't mean that you're wrong. Everything will be fine. You'll experience the peace of letting go as well as the joy of letting others be right. You'll also notice that as you reach out and let others be "right" they will become less defensive and more loving toward you. They might even reach back. But if for some reason they don't that's okay too. You will have the inner satisfaction of knowing that you have done your part to create a more loving world and certainly you'll be more peaceful yourself.

We are interested in the preservation of the biodiversity on Earth. What I've been working on is rats. Just looking at rats, you can understand continental drift and climate change. We've actually rediscovered rats that were thought to be extinct. Darwin was the last one to document them on the Galapagos Islands. People have gone there for hundreds of years and not seen one. In 1997, I went there with my mentor(导师) and another graduate student. Everyone thought I was crazy, why look for something that doesn't exist? They wouldn't even give us permits. Our plan was to stop on a beach for a day and then hike up to the top of an extinct volcano where very few people had been: We were on a picturesque, isolated beach. We set out the traps just to see what we might find. The next morning, I checked my traps! I immediately ran back to my mentor. When he looked in the mental trap—I will never forget his face— It looked like he'd seen a ghost.

I certainly understand the argument: "Who cares about an extinct rat?" but you have no idea what role that rat plays in that functioning ecosystem. People can appreciate beauty, so that's why people love pandas and want to keep them around. You never hear, "What good is panda?" Ecologically, these rats are much more important to their ecosystem than those pandas— not that I don't love pandas but we have to look beyond the big and beautiful.

    I teach conservation biology and evolution. In both you have to appeal to people asking "Why is this important to me?" Some scientists refuse to do that. That's my entire approach. I'll ask "How many of you had a family member who was in a tornado, hurricane or flood?" .And almost every hand goes up. Climate change is suddenly very personal, and now they want to hear what you are saying. You are not looking for sympathy for the rats but for a greater understanding of the system.

    Five-year-old Prisilla Perez, a student at Meador Elementary School in Willis, was unhappy with her recent haircut, which resulted from a severe disease. When students in her class started calling Prisilla a boy, she felt ashamed, often crying and losing focus in school.

    Her teacher, Shannon Grimm, sympathized with her unhappiness. Grimm and Prisilla's mom were concerned, but their ideas didn't work. “We had classroom discussions about how girls have short hair and boys have long hair, and I showed them photos of movie stars with different looks,” Grimm said. “However, it wasn't sinking in.”

Grimm thought about Prisilla throughout winter break, and one morning, she had an idea: Cut off her hair — a scary thought for Grimm, who wore her hair long and took pride in it. “I've never had short hair, and I stressed about it for two weeks before making a decision,” she said. On Jan. 4, Grimm invited a hairstylist friend to her home. “I told him to keep going, even if I cried,” she said.

    The class loved their teacher's new do, especially Prisilla, who excitedly ran off the school bus that afternoon yelling, “Mom, Ms. Grimm cut her hair!” The teacher also bought matching bows for herself and the girl, so they could style their hair together.

    In February, the teacher recommended Prisilla for the school district's Student of the Month Award, but during the Monday ceremony, she received a surprise “hero medal” from the girl. “Now we have matching awards,” says Grimm.

Prisilla's mother, Maria, said that Grimm's thoughtfulness brought her to tears. “I was shocked. I was crying. I couldn't believe it — she did something I wouldn't have the bravery to do. I will never forget that.”

    Scott and Daniel Harry are enjoying everyday tasks like shopping and washing for the first time following their move to an accommodation (住宿) support house in Kurwongbah, north of Brisbane last year.

    Disability Services Queensland's Strengthening Non-Government Organisations project provided an accommodation support model that would enable residents (居住者) like Daniel and Scott to live more independently.

    The house is just one of many accommodation support services funded (资助) through the project. The five-bedroom house provides 24-hour care for up to four individuals with complex needs, including medical support. Care and staffing levels are varied and flexible, depending on each resident's requirements.

    Scott and Daniel, who have a severe form of Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy, require 24-hour support in all activities of daily living. Before they moved to the house, they lived with their family. Scott says living at home was difficult as it placed a physical and emotional strain (负担) on their parents who had to wake them several times each night to reposition them or place them on breathing machines.

    "We were heavyhearted," says Scott, who is planning to write a book about his life experiences. "But our parents now have a lot more time for themselves. We now manage ourselves on a day-to-day basis."

    Daniel is an enthusiastic gardener, taking care of his own vegetable garden. The men share the house with one other young man, and they go to rugby league games, meeting up with friends.

    Leeding Care Australia provides the care service at Kurwongbah. Manager Lee Garniss says setting up the facilities (设施) has not been without its challenges.

    "It is an unconventional model of care," Lee says. "The home is Scott and Daniel's home, however it is also a workplace for their support staff. Balancing these two requirements has been a challenge for all."

    "We have experienced a bit of a learning phase over the last twelve months. However, by working as a team we try our best to meet the needs of both residents and staff and I think we have achieved the right balance."

Volunteer Day

    What better way is there to enjoy your own hobbies while helping others at the same time? Come to Volunteer Day and choose which activity you'd like to join for the day. See below for a schedule of events on Volunteer Day.

    Volunteer Day schedule:

    7:30a.m.: Meet at the Community (社区) Center for juice and bagels.

    8:00—8:30 a.m.: Choose which activity you'd like to help with for the day.

    8:30 a.m.: Board the bus to your activity site.

    9:00 a.m.—3:30 p.m.: Work as a volunteer.

    3:30 p.m.: Board the bus that will take you back to the Community Center.

    See below for a list of volunteer opportunities for Volunteer Day so you can begin thinking about which activity you might want to join.

    A list of volunteer activities:

    Paint houses: Do you enjoy making art? If so, this volunteer opportunity might be just right for you! Happy Homes is a local organization that provides home repairs for needy people in the form of painting. For elderly or physically disabled people who cannot do repairs to their homes, Happy Homes provides volunteer painters to repaint old homes; outside or in. Happy Homes also provides painters to create beautiful wall paintings inside schools or community centers.

    Plant flowers: Do you enjoy being outside in nature? City Parks Association has many great opportunities for people who love to be outdoors. Help plant flowers and bushes in city parks; help lay paths at Cave Springs Park, or help pick up rubbish around the river banks. These activities are very active, so remember to be prepared with plenty of drinking water!

    Read to children: Do you enjoy working with young children? Do you like books? Love and Learning is an organization that provides volunteers to help children with learning disabilities. Read books out loud to groups of children four to six years old, or read one-on-one with struggling readers seven to eight years old.

    Play with animals: Do you love animals? Lovely Friends is an organization that visits local animal shelters and provides volunteers to spend time with the animals while their cages are being cleaned. Play with puppies, snuggle with cats, or hand-feed rabbits.

    Eating red meat is linked to cancer and heart disease, but are the risks big enough to justify giving up juicy burgers and delicious steaks? Probably not, according to researchers who reviewed data from 12 clinical trials involving about 54,000 people. In a series of controversial papers, the researchers argue that the increased health risks tied to red meat are small and uncertain, and that cutting back likely wouldn't be worth it for people who enjoy meat.

    Those conclusions go against established medical advice. They were swiftly attacked by a group of famous U.S. scientists who took the unusual step of trying to stop the papers from being published until their criticisms were addressed.

    The new work does not say red or processed meats like hot dogs and bacon are healthy, or that people should eat more of them. The team's reviews of past studies generally support the ties to cancer, heart disease and other bad health outcomes. But the authors say the evidence is weak, and that there's not much certainty meat is really the cause, since other diet and lifestyle factors could be at play.

    If the latest example of how divisive nutrition research has become, with its uncertainties leaving the door open for conflicting advice. Critics say findings often aren't backed by strong evidence. Defenders counter that nutrition studies can rarely be conclusive because of the difficulty of measuring the effects of any single food, but that methods have improved.

    Based on their analyses, the researchers said people do not have to cut back for health reasons. But they noted that their own advice is weak, and acknowledged that they didn't consider factors such as animal welfare and the environment. Indeed, the case that meat production is bad for animal welfare and the environment is stronger than the case that it's bad for human health, according to an editorial that accompanies the report.

    Not all of the report authors agreed with its conclusions. Three of the 14 researchers said they support reducing red and processed meats. A coauthor of one of the reviews is also among those who called for a publication delay.

    Those who pushed to postpone publication also questioned why certain studies were included in the reviews while others were left out.

    As for his own diet, Dr. Gordon Guyatt, a member of the international research team that conducted the reviews, said he no longer thinks red or processed meats have significant health risks. But he said he still avoids them out of habit, and for animal welfare and environmental reasons.