Value Now No Longer Missed

    John, a famous musician, took his priceless antique zither(齐特琴)and played it in the crowded subway station. The music emanating from the zither was delicately streaming1the whole station. However, during the one-hour play, only six or seven people were truly2the charming music. John only got 52 dollars for his work that day.

    However, in normal days, when John is about to hold a 3, one ticket can be sold at more than 100 dollars and it is extremely 4to buy a ticket even at such a high price. Therefore, later, many passers-by in the station that day felt deeply5for not recognizing the famous musician and missing such a valuable but6music feast.

    I have a very7friend who had totally changed after knowing that his wife8an acute illness. He cooked by himself for the family and took a walk with his wife every day. Nonetheless, his wife still did not manage to9the illness and passed away after three months. After that, he often sighed 10that due to his past busy life, he had missed a lot of beautiful time with his wife. But now, it is  11to make up for it.

    It is no use crying over spilt milk. We have12a lot of precious things in our life without knowing how to 13them. Actually, I also missed something 14before. The reason is simple: we had thought that we could still own them tomorrow.

    Nevertheless, tomorrow is actually15reliable. There was a famous Buddhist monk saying that in many people's lives, they have only done two things: waiting and 16. The result is that they were always too late to cherish 17they had before they lost it. We would often claim to do something when we 18, or when we have money or when we become old, etc. However, when we reach the19, we could no longer realize our20, because we have lost it by then.

    I got my first bike in 1943. It was an old, second-hand blue bike. Bikes of any kind were very1at that time. A new bike was rarely to be seen, as2was needed to produce weapons to3our brave men and women in the fighting overseas.

    At ten, I was quite4 I convinced my mother I could earn enough money to be a millionaire—if I only had an old second-hand bike. She laughed but5about 80 per cent of the total cost of the bike. I had6a few dollars digging gardens, cleaning snow and doing other jobs.

    I7Mother I'd pay back the loan(借款). The day I got my bike was one of the happiest of my life. I could8earning some money--9groceries(杂货) for Clarks' grocery store and packages for a small store a few block away—this was in the Forest Hills section of Edmonton. I made a few dollars but10to start another work, as the first was proving too11to come by.

    My mother, another brother, Len, and I were to12Dad in Yellowknife, which was so far way that my bike couldn't be transported there. Leaving my bike was very difficult, but13had to come first. I made very little money14it, not enough to pay Mother back. We15Yellowknife in the fall of 1943. It was quite an experience for a young fellow, or anybody else for that matter.

    After we'd been in Yellowknife for a while, I was able to16Mother for the bike loan. I got a job at the recreation centre in the Negus Mine. The17paid great—I had lots of money, but would not18another bike. The19there were made with the tailings(尾矿) from the mine—lots of rough rock. The new20had not been built at that time.

    Growing roots

    When I was growing up, I had an old neighbor named Dr. Gibbs. He didn't look like any doctor I'd 1 known. When Dr. Gibbs wasn't 2 lives, he was planting trees.

The good doctor had some3 theories on planting trees. He believed in "No pains, no gains". He never 4 his new trees, which was5 many people. Once I asked why. He 6 that watering plants spoiled them, and that if you water them, each following tree generation will 7 weaker and weaker. So you have to make things8 for them. He talked about how watering trees

    9 shallow roots, and how trees that weren't watered had to grow deep roots in

    10 of water. I came to understand that he meant deep roots were to be 11 I planted a couple of trees a few years back and I took good care of them. Two years of12 has resulted in trees that expect to be waited on hand and foot. Whenever a cold wind blows, they 13and tremble their branches. Funny things about those trees of Dr. Gibbs'. The lack of water seemed to 14them in ways comfort and ease never could.

    I used to15for my sons that their lives will be easy. But16 I've been thinking that it's time to17 my prayer. I know my children are going to meet

    18 and I'm praying they will be strong. The prayer for comfort is seldom met. What we need to do is to pray for deep roots,19when the winds blow, we won't be20away.

    In spite of the fun and laughter, 13-year-old Frank Wilson was not happy. It was 1 that he received all the presents he wanted. And he also 2 the big Christmas dinner with family members.3, Frank was not happy because this was his first Christmas without his brother, Steve, who during the year, had been killed in a car accident. Frank 4 his brother.

    Frank said good-bye to his relatives, and explained to his parents that he was going to see a friend. Since it was cold outside, Frank 5 his new plaid jacket. It was his favorite gift. He placed the other presents on his new sled (雪橇). Then Frank 6.

    As Frank went down the street toward home, through one front window, he saw a room with old 7 hanging over an empty fireplace. A woman was seated nearby, crying. The stockings 8 him of the way he and his brother always 9 theirs side by side. The next morning, they would find presents.

    Then Frank had a10. He knocked on the door. “Yes?” the 11voice of a woman asked. “May I come in?” asked Frank. “You are very welcome,” she said.12his sled full of gifts and thinking he wanted to 13 gifts. “But I have no food or gifts for you. I have 14 for my own children.” “That's not why I am here,” Frank replied. Please 15 whatever presents you would like for your children from the sled.” “Why, God bless you!” the 16 woman answered gratefully. She selected some candies, a toy airplane and a doll. Finally, the stockings were 17. “Thank you so much!” the woman Said. “You are welcome,” Frank said and left.

    Frank's18was full of happiness. Then he gave his jacket to a poor boy. At last, he19 all his gifts. Now Frank was worried how he could 20 to his parents that he had given his presents to others.

A Doll from Santa

    Alice's mother died when she was five years old. That year was 1925, and life was hard. Alice, who grew up to be my mother, told me that her family was too 1to even afford to give her a doll.

    One afternoon in December 1982, I was decorating the tree to prepare for the Christmas season. A young lady 2me with a sample of her handiwork: beautiful handmade 3. She was taking orders for Christmas. I decided to get one for my daughter, Katie, who was almost five years old. Then I had an idea. I asked the lady if she could make me a 4doll for my mother — one with gray hair and a pair of glasses: a grandmother doll.

    The doll maker felt that this idea was certainly 5and took it on as a creative challenge. So I placed my Christmas 6: two dolls, one blonde and one gray-haired for Christmas morning! Things really started to fall into place 7a friend had told me that his dad, who played Santa Claus in my area, would be willing to make a visit on Christmas morning to our home to 8my Katie her presents!

    Christmas Day arrived and at the planned time, 9did Santa Claus. Katie was delighted that Santa had come to see her at her 10house, the happiest I had ever seen her in her young life. My mother was enjoying watching her granddaughter's 11to the visit from this special guest. As Santa turned to leave, he looked once more into his bag and took out one more 12. As he asked who Alice was, my mother, surprised by her name being called, 13that she in fact was Alice. Santa handed her the gift, which was accompanied by a message card that read: For Alice,

    I was cleaning out my sleigh before my 14this year and came across this package that was supposed to be delivered on December 25, 1925. The present inside has 15, but I felt that you might 16wish to have it. Many apologies for the17of the gift.

    Love, Santa Claus

    My mother's reaction was one of the greatest deeply 18scenes I have ever witnessed. She couldn't speak but only gazed at the doll she had 19fifty-seven years as tears of joy running down her cheeks. That doll, given by “Santa”, made my mother the happiest “20” alive.

    When 10 girls from Gardiner High School in Montana received a sum of money to develop an invention to solve a real-world problem, they decided to create a solar-powered shelter to help the homeless.

For over a year, the girls have been using all their free time to complete the 1.

    “They have this amazing internal(内心的) 2 that I've never seen in any individual,” Violet Mardiro, a teacher at Gardiner High who is 3 with the team on the project, told The Huffington Post. “I thought 4 that maybe some of them would give up, say 'I didn't 5 this much work,' but they haven't. They're just working hard and they're not giving up and they're super 6.”

    Living in a low-income community, the girls have seen the 7 of homelessness first-hand. Many of them are from immigrant families and hoped the 8, which is powered by rechargeable solar panels(电子板), would help the 9.

    Seventeen-year-old Maggie Mejia told the Huffington Post that 10 she had no previous 11 experience, the girls figured out as a team how to 12 the shelter using how-to videos and books that taught them how to code. But the most important 13 she's learned during the project isn't technical.

    "I've learned a lot about 14 others, working for the community and being selfless and showing a better world to other people and 15 someone else's life," she said. The project was carried out with DIY Girls, a nonprofit that helps fund STEM – science, technology, engineering and math – projects for 16.

Mardirosian said all the participating students have 17 their interest in STEM through this project.

    “Many of them didn't think about engineering before. They thought maybe they're not 18 out to be an engineer. But working together, now they 19 their skill – whether a writing skill or a drawing skill or a speaking skill, they're all 20 in this field. Everyone has found their importance in this picture,” she said.