"Whoa! What are you doing? " I asked. I had just walked into my daughter's room as she was1a science project. Normally, I would have been pleased at such a(n)2But this time, her project involved much sand.3she'd put some plastic under her work area, it wasn't nearly enough. The sand was4 all over our newly renovated(整修的) floor.

My daughter immediately felt my displeasure and began to5herself. "I used plastic!" she responded angrily. I responded more6, "But the sand is getting all over!"

"Where else am I supposed to do it?" she7.

    Why won't she admit when she has done something8? I felt my9, thinking of the future: what would her life look like if she couldn't admit her mistakes?

    My fear translated into more anger, this time about how10it was for her to admit mistakes. We had a11  She said something that I felt disrespectful to me and I12my voice. Both of us ended up 13terrible. I wished this  14happened before.

    So I thought that I needed a good15to respond to my daughter. For this, I went to my wife, Eleanor, who was truly a master. I asked her how I should have 16it.

"Sweetie," she said, role-playing me in the17with my daughter, "There's a lot of sand here and we need to18it up before it destroys the floor, how can I help?

    That's really a great way to deal with it: first19the problem, next state what needs to happen and then offer to20 . It's simple, right? However, it's really helpful in solving some problems in life.

    Tim Becker and his neighbors are doing something to make their neighborhood a safe area.

    When Tim Becker gets in his car to go shopping, he doesn't1 drive to a store and back home. He always looks 2up and down the streets of his neighborhood. He looks for anything 3 such as strange cars, loud noises, 4 windows, or people gathering on street corners.

    Tim 5 to a neighborhood watch group（巡逻小组）in Strongsville, Indiana, USA. The neighborhood watch group6 on his third Wednesday of every month. That's 7 Tim gets together with about ten of his neighbors to discuss community 8 Members of the neighborhood watch group want to help the police 9 their homes, streets, and families.

    Tina Stedman,10president of neighborhood watch group, agrees with Tim. “People seem to think that crime happens to other people but not 11them. Actually, it really happens,” she said, “and I think nobody has the12 to steal from other people or to make them feel 13 at their own homes.”

    Alex, a member of the group, said that all the neighbors were14to help one another, “We15 each other's homes. We keep watch on the neighborhood at night and on weekends. Usually a16 of four or five of us goes out together. If something doesn't look right, we will call the 17 For example, if we notice a group of teenagers who seem to be looking for 18 or someone destroying property（财产）, we report to the police.”

    Alex feels the neighborhood watch group19a lot in reducing crimes. Her husband Jim agrees, “Police are good people, but they can't do20.

    Last Friday when Jose Rodriguez , a 5-year-old white boy, asked his mother Lydia Rodriguez if he could get his blonde hair cut like his black friend Reddy's, and of course his mother agreed. For a very1reason the two pre-school friends decided to2 their teacher with matching haircuts.

    Jose3that if he and Reddy had the same haircut, no one would be able to4 them. Reddy apparently thought this trick was5as well.

    “It is just two6 boys. Obviously, they see they are different colors, they just don't care. It is not7, Rodriguez said. She sees Jose's inability to see a8 between himself and his friend as a parenting win. “I just taught him to9everyone the same,” she said.

    The teacher played along and10she was talking to Jose when Reddy arrived before Jose, he told the teacher and his11he was Jose.

    On Monday, Rodriguez 12the story on the Facebook.78,000 people 13 it and the story has gone viral（疯传）. On the post she wrote: “If this isn't proof that14and prejudice is something that is15 , I don't know what is. Their16 is the only difference Jose sees in the two of them. Though Jose loves17himself on TV and the Internet, he remains unsure why his haircut became such a big18 .

    “He still has no idea why people19so much”, Rodriguez said. “He wanted to20Reddy and now he thinks they look the same.”

    I went with some colleagues from my office for a dinner in a very popular local restaurant. It was 1 business time and the restaurant was crowded. We 2found a table in a comer for three of us.

    As soon as we sat down，we heard a crash when a cleaning boy 3the floor with all the plates he was carrying. There was 4 and no one was saying or doing anything.

    In a flash I remembered mv 5 many years ago. Once, I 6 in the airport because 1 had rushed there on my own on an empty stomach. I was picked up and taken care of by two 7. Now this was my chance to 8 it forward.

    I ran to the young man's side immediately, turned him on his back and screamed for someone to 9 a hot drink. Soon people started asking if I was a doctor. I said I was not, 10 I was skillful at blacking out（晕厥）.

    The kid soon opened his eves, 11what had happened. I12 him by saying it was OK and I had had a 13 experience. He had not eaten anything. I held the 14drink to his mouth till he finished it and sat with him till he felt OK. By then the 15 had arrived. I asked her to give the kid something to eat. I offered to pay.

    The manager was kind enough to refuse the 16 and agreed to make sure the kid ate before he went home. By the time all this was 17 it was getting late for my colleagues. We hadn't 18 anything yet，so they decided to go home.

    I slowly walked home, not hungry any more, feeling 19 for the opportunity I pay forward the 20 I had received many years ago.

    I boarded the airplane heading to Barcelona, frightened because in a matter of hours I'd be landing in a country populated by people who all spoke a language which was completely unknown to me. Not only that. I'd be 1 the next two weeks there.

    All the butterflies I had in my 2 immediately flew away because as I arrived at the warm, colorful campus 3 I'd be living for the next fourteen days. I felt like I'd found myself a second 4.Counselors and other staff members welcomed us at the gate, introducing themselves, and just being all round 5 .

    I made my 6 to my assigned room only to find a crying girl and two other girls 7 her down. Little 8 I know how many memories I'd make 9 these three girls, how close we'd become over the next 10 of weeks and how many times the camp director would have to come to our room at 3:00 a.m. and 11 not to send us shopping if we didn't go to bed 12 .

    In the mornings we took Spanish classes and a guy 13he learnt more Spanish over these two weeks than he did for the past year at 14.During the day, I formed life-long relationships with people from all 15 of the globe, and mostly visited the breathtaking Barcelonan beaches.

    Speaking of breakfast, the meals were restaurant—worthy, the 16were endless and people with special food needs were well 17.

    The staff always found some way or another to 18 us, whether it was having a surprise water party at ten p. m. or having an unannounced watermelon—eating contest, they always had 19 up their sleeves.

    By the end of camp, everyone was so sad that they had to leave, there were enough 20 to fill up an Olympic—sized pool.

When I look back at the first half of the year. I am amazed by how many challenges I have been through. The biggest one was definitely my high school graduation 1.

When I first arrived in this Czech Republic four years ago, I was just a normal exchange 2who spoke only English, then at the end of the year-Long exchange program, I came up with the idea of 3my high school studies there.

At that time, I was only sixteen and delighted by my new future. What I underestimated was the 4of completing school in the Czech language, which is considered to be one of the most 5languages in the world. As I 6 knowledge of certain subjects I receive the worst marks and people around the world doubted whether I could graduate. However, I practiced all the time. Gradually, I could communicate with others fluently and my 7 grew.

The final exam day came. Thinking about everyone who had helped and supported me along my journey, I felt8and confident.

In May, I received notice that I had 9the exam. At my graduation ceremony, my Czech teacher said very proudly in front of everyone, "One student, she is from China with merely three years of learning Czech, she 10. She deserves a golden folder for the certification. "

My journey through high school was finally finished, though the journey of University is just about to begin, I think I am ready.