Compassion（同情心） is a desire within us to help others. With effort, we can translate compassion into 1. An experience last weekend showed me this is 2. I work part-time in a supermarket across from a building 3 the elderly. These old people are our main 4, and it's not hard to lose 5 over their slowness. But last Sunday, one 6 gentleman appeared to teach me a 7 lesson. The man walked up to my register with a box of biscuits. He said he was 8, had just moved into his room, and had 9 in his cupboards. He asked if we could let him have the food on trust. He promised to  10 me the next day.

    I couldn't help staring at him. I  11 what kind of person he had been years before, and 12 he would be like if luck had gong his way. I had a hurt in my heart for this kind of human soul. I told him that was 13 , but store rules didn't allow me to do so. I felt 14 and unkind saying this, but I 15 my job.

    Just then, another man, standing behind the first, spoke up. “If anything”, he looked more pitiable. “16 it to me.” was all he said.

    What I had been feeling was pity. Pity is soft and easy. Compassion, 17, is caring in action. I 18 the second man but told him that was not 19 either. Then I reached into my pocket and paid for the biscuits myself. I reached into my pocket 20 these two men had reached into my heart and taught me compassion.

    One of the most important lessons I learned from my father took place in our driveway when I was in elementary school. We used to play basketball every day, and he 1that I needed to learn how to shoot and dribble with my left hand. Being naturally athletic, I quickly became frustrated with my lack of left-handed 2. I became very angry, 3 down on the driveway, and began to cry, and my father stood there and looked at me as he waited 4 for me to get over my tears. When I realize that my behavior was not getting me 5, I got back up. He passed me the 6 and I continued to practice. His lesson of 7 giving up and working harder to accomplish my goals was conveyed to me without a word. I 8 became skillful with my left hand, but what I really learned that day was a road map for overcoming my biggest 9 in life.

    10 I was eighteen I was in a car accident, where I broke a vertebra in my spine. I was going to 11 to play soccer, and now I was told that I would never again be able to 12 athletically. For half a year I was not even able to 13 my own clothes. I wanted to 14 school and give up. I wanted to lie down and cry that life was 15, much as I had done in our driveway so long ago. 16every time I felt that way, that earlier memory danced in my mind. I knew that 17 I was patient and continued to work hard, I could overcome this difficulty.

    For three years I continued to go to school, doing three to four hours of 18 rehabilitation every day, with constant support from my parents. And I finally earned my 19 back on the playing field. That lesson in the driveway had 20 me to be on the field, and I owed it all to my dad. I succeeded because of who my father is, and who I am because of him.

    It was Tom's first visit to England, and he was looking forward to his first journey on London's Underground Railway. And against his friends'1, he was determined to travel 2.

    He entered the station shortly after five o'clock in the afternoon. This is a 3 time to travel in London,4 crowds of people go home from work at this hour. He 5 to join a long line of people waiting for tickets. When at last his 6 came, he had some difficulty in making himself understood by the ticket seller. 7, he got the right ticket in the end and by asking people the 8, he also found the right platform. It was 9with people. He did not10 to get on the first train, but he was able to move nearer to the platform so as to be in a better 11to get on the next one. When this train came in, Tom was12 forward onto the train by the 13 of people from behind. The doors closed and the train moved off. He was unable to see the14  of the stations where the train 15but he knew that the station he wanted was the sixth 16 along the line. When the train reached the sixth station, Tom got off, feeling  17 that his journey had been so easy. But he suddenly realized that he had come to a station he had never

18 He explained his19 to a man who was standing on the platform. With a 20 on his face, he told Tom that he had caught a train going in the opposite direction.

    As a child, I started learning to play the piano, my favorite musical 1,but I was forced to give up when I started my middle school 2 I could concentrate more on my studies.

    It's one of my biggest 3to stop practicing the piano when I recall sadly today. During the following years, I kept telling my piano teacher that I would4. However, I didn't keep my promise because I was 5 with my study.6 I lost touch with my teacher. Some years later, my teacher died. I was very sad because I lost such a good teacher. She was a very warm and gentle person. It hurts me to think she may have been 7 that I never returned. I haven't taken lessons since then but to be honest, I 8 to. Sitting at the piano, I couldn't help recalling many9-- times of my practising at home and playing before my teacher and one time my teacher 10 me after I played entire pieces of music wrong in front of her colleagues. I was so11 that I could hardly say anything. But her12 helped me ease my shame. These memories, 13, good or bad, never caused my 14 for playing the piano again.

    This thought then led me to think that15is like music, and that we all try to play different 16 in the instrument of our life. Sometimes the pitch(音高) is 17when we play it well, but sometimes we are out of tone. However, we all continue to create our own 18style of music. No matter what style our music is, it is 19 that we sing the songs of joy, quietness and love. Though I may never make it back to piano lessons, it doesn't20 that I've stopped making music.

    When I came to my new school three years ago, I was surprised at how lonely I felt. Then one of my classmates invited me to her house for a dinner 1. I was a little anxious, but finally I gladly 2.

    Not really knowing how 3 the bus ride should be, I 4when I saw the landmarks5 on my friend's hand-drawn map. But when I got close enough to the 6, I found none of the streets were shown on the map. I was 7 on a busy road with cars driving past without a person in sight. I had no 8 when the next bus would come, 9 when a bus did come by, I 10 got on. I told the bus driver where I wanted to go and he said that I had caught the 11 bus, but he let me stay on. After he had finished his scheduled bus route, he 12 to help me out. I gratefully showed him my little hand-drawn map but 13 did not help much.

    He finally 14 me off at a main road to catch a different bus and was 15 that he could not help me more. After a few minutes of walking, I noticed a bus pull up beside me. It was the 16 bus driver. He explained that he didn't want to leave me there 17. He sent out a call and someone radioed back, saying that the bus I needed to catch was about ten minutes away. At last I made it to the dinner party 18 I was over an hour late.

    I am forever thankful for the 19 that this bus driver had for me. His act of kindness left a 20 on my heart.

    I was a single parent of four small children, working at a low-paid job. Money was always tight, but I 1 to make ends meet (收支平衡), and if not a lot, 2 we had enough. Not knowing we were poor, my kids just thought I was 3. I've always been glad about that.

    It was Christmas time, and although there wasn't 4 for a lot of gifts, we planned to celebrate with a family party. But the big 5 for the kids was the fun of Christmas 6. They planned weeks ahead of time, asking 7 what they wanted for Christmas. 8, I had saved $ 120 for gifts to be shared by all five of us.

    The big day 9. I gave each kid a twenty-dollar bill and 10 them to look for 11 of about four dollars each. Then everyone went away excitedly. We had two hours to shop and 12 back at the “Santa's Workshop”.

    Driving home, everyone was in high Christmas spirits, 13 my youngest daughter, Ginger, who was unusually 14. She had only one small, flat bag with a few candies—fifty-cent candies! I was very doubtful but I didn't say anything 15 we got home. I called her into my bedroom and closed the door. This is what she told me:

    “I was looking 16 thinking of what to buy when I 17 to read the little cards on the “Giving Trees”. One was for a little girl, four years old, and all she 18 for Christmas was a doll. So I took the card off the tree and 19 the doll for her. We have so much and she doesn't have anything.”

    I never felt so 20 as I did that day.