One day a mother brought home a small 1 and gave it to her little girl on her birthday. She told her little girl that the jar was 2 , and that she could write to her mommy about anything in the world and then put it in the jar. And 3 , in its place, there would be a 4 for her. Soon the jar became a special part of their lives.

    The little girl loved to get 5 from her mommy. They always told her how 6 she was. Sometimes, too, there would be a little 7 in the jar with a note telling her how 8 her mommy was of her. She 9 all of her mommy's letters in a pretty box by her bed.

     The mother 10 each of her little girl's letters, too. As the years went by, that little girl 11 into a young lady and then got married and started a 12 of her own. For the first time, the jar sat 13 . The mother dusted the jar every day and sometimes looked inside, 14 sadly that the magic jar years had to end.

     One day the young lady came to 15 her mother. She went straight to her mother's room, opened the chest at the end of her bed, and found what she was looking for. She 16a piece of paper and put it in the jar, and 17 it to her mother. The mother opened the magic jar and there was that note from so long ago, “You're going to be a 18 !”

    And when that baby boy was born months later, there was the jar 19 in his nursery(育儿室) with a blue ribbon tied around it, and a note that read, “Magic jar years never 20 : they are always just beginning.”

    My parents fixed in me the ideas of family, faith and patriotism(爱国主义) when I was young1we struggled to make ends meet, they2 to me and my four brothers and sisters how 3we were to live in a great country with 4 opportunities.

    I got my first real 5 when I was ten. My dad injured his back working in a factory and had to be6as a hairstylist. The owner of the shopping center gave Dad a(n)7on his rent for cleaning the parking lot(停车场) three nights a week, which meant a little 8that looked like a lawn mower(割草机). Mom and I emptied garbage cans and 9 waste by hand. It took two to three hours to clean the lot. I'd 10in the car on the way home because of tiredness.

    I did this for two years, but the11I learned have lasted a lifetime. I 12discipline and a strong work ethic(道德准则), and learned at a(n)13age the importance of balancing life's 14interests­in my case, school, homework and a job. This really15during my senior year of high school, when I worked 40 hours a week at a fast­food restaurant while taking college­pre 16.

    The hard work 17I attended the U.S Military Academy and went on to receive graduate degrees in 18and business from Harvard.19 I joined a big Los Angeles law firm and was elected to the California State Assembly(议会). In these jobs and in everything else I've done. I have never forgotten those20in the parking lot.

    My family and I were on our way to Pennsylvania and it was the middle of a snowstorm. We were almost there when we got stuck in a 1 traffic jam. Cars stretched (延伸)ahead of us and behind us as 2 as we could see. We sat in the same 3 without moving for seven hours. We 4periodically to see if the5 ahead of us were moving, which they had never been6there was a large 18-wheeler truck in front of us, my mom had to 7 the door to see around the 18-wheeler to get a 8 of the traffic jam in front of us. All we could do was sit and 9.At no time did any of us fall asleep or stop10 attention, because we were always checking up on the traffic. We sat for hours and heard11 about the cause of the traffic jam from the12and the only person we talked to was a truck driver13 us, who didn't know anything about it either.14after seven hours, the truck in front of us began moving slowly and we were happy to get moving, but when we15in front of the truck, there were absolutely NO cars to be seen, and NONE behind us16 one 18-wheeler. The only other vehicle besides those was the one of the trucker that had been next to us the 17 time. There were no signs of a traffic jam the entire 18 of our trip. It was as though the cars had all 19To this day we have no 20 as to how this could have happened.

    The accident happened on a Sepember night in 2013. A vehicle struck my car from behind 1 I was driving home. At the hospital. the doctors 2 I was a quadriplegic(四肢瘫痪者) and told me I wasn't going to be able to move anything from my neck 3. I had lost the 4 of almost every muscle and was very weak.

    I realized that my life was 5.My head 6 like a heavy ball and I couldn't hold it up. I was unable to use a phone, and unable to 7 or wash myself. I couldn't grasp anything: a fork or spoon was too 8 to pick up.

    However, I saw a glimpse 9 and was inspired by other patients with 10 like mine in the recovery center. The first year was slow and I didn't see much 11. But I had to learn to be 12 with myself and to enjoy every 13 going forward. I was determined to walk again, so giving up was no longer a(n) 14. I struggled hard on my recovery(康复) and still do to this day. I'm now moving my 15 and arms on my own, doing things like swimming and yoga. All of this is 16 my doctor's wrong, and is turning the page from the impossible to the possible.

    My family, friends and team encourage me to 17 to work harder. I believe that this difficulty is an opportunity to 18 and become stronger. I'm sure my story will inspire others not to 19. If I learned one 20 from my car accident, it's this: Never give up on hope.

    A Tennessee woman celebrated her birthday with a bittersweet gift from beyond the grave ——flowers from her father, who died five years ago.

    Michael William Sellers pre-paid for a bouquet of 1to be delivered to his daughter, Bailey, every 2 until she turned 21. And on Friday, Bailey 3 the gift, her last from her dad.

    "My dad4 when I was 16 from cancer and before he died he pre-paid flowers so I could receive them every year on my birthday," then she said. "This is my 21st birthday flowers and the5."

    Bailey said the special gift made birthdays6."Since that day I've hated my birthday 7he always made it so special," Bailey said "I was especially8 my 21st because I knew it would be the last year."

    Bailey said this year's gift and birthday card were especially 9."I broke down," she said. "That letter was very 10and sad all at the same time."

    "This is my last love letter to," her father11. "I do not want you to drop another 12for me, for I am in a 13 place. He also told her to always respect her mother and stay 14to herself." Be happy and live life to the fullest," he wrote. "I will be with forever, just 15and I will be."

    "That was my dad," she said. "He was trying to make my birthday 16."

Social media users17 the post, calling it both "heartwarming," and "heartbreaking."

    Others praised her father, calling him a(an) "18 of what a good man is like," "He would be very 19," Bailey said "he'd be very proud that it20 a lot of people."

    The day we brought Julie home I knew that we were in quite a ride. She was more than just a 1. Though the smallest one in the house, she didn't let that 2her from trying to show off. It made me 3that she would walk up to the bowl of dog food and bark away a dog ten times her 4. She never once begged, but she wasn't afraid to ask for 5either. Too many times I found my toes being tickled(使发痒) by her tongue until I 6moved her up to my lap.

    Julie didn't mind being petted but wouldn't 7being carried around like a doll. The kids soon learned just how to 8her: with both love and respect. Julie loved a good dog treat and a 9touch. When it came to haircuts and baths, however, she wasn't afraid to show her 10about them with a gentle growl(怒吼声).

    Julie lived on and on while some of my younger dogs had 11over the years, but her 12slowly got worse and worse. She lost weight and had trouble 13. She became both blind and deaf and we had to 14her carefully when we were walking her. Sometimes she slept so 15that I was afraid that she had finally passed away. Yet, she always 16her head when I gently touched her old body. That was until last night.

    I buried Julie in the woods behind my home with 17eyes and hurting heart. I asked myself why I had taken so many dogs into my 18over the years when the 19of losing them was so great. As I was walking home remembering Julie, I came to 20the answer: the love was always far greater than the pain.