When I was thirteen, my family moved from Boston to Tucson, Arizona. 1the move, my father 2us in the living-room on a freezing January night. My sisters and I sat around the fire, not 3that the universe would suddenly change its course. “In May, we're 4to Arizona.” The words, so small, didn't seem5enough to hold my new life. But the world changed and I awoke on a train moving across the country. I watched the 6change from green trees to flat dusty plains to high mountains as I saw strange new plants that 7mysteries yet to come. Finally, we arrived and 8into our new home.9my older sisters were sad at the loss of friends, I10explored our new surroundings.

    One afternoon, I was out exploring 11and saw a new kind of cactus(仙人掌). I crouched(蹲) down for a closer look. “You'd better not12that.” I turned around to see an old woman. “Are you new to this neighborhood?” I explained that I was,13  new to the entire state.

    “My name is Ina Thorne. Have you got used to life in the14? It must be quite a 15after living in Boston.” How could I explain how I16the desert? I couldn't seem to find the right words.

    “It's vastness,” she offered. “That vastness17you stand on the mountains overlooking the desert — you can 18how little you are in comparison with the world.19  you feel that the possibilities are limitless.” That was it. That was the feeling I'd had ever since I'd first seen the mountains of my new home. Again, my 20would change with just a few simple words. “Would you like to come to my home tomorrow? Someone should teach you which plant you should and shouldn't touch.”

    I was six years old. It was Halloween. The school was having its annual Halloween parade(游行) to 1 it. All the kids would march a few 2 through the neighborhood.

    “Just buy him a costume,” my father said. “ It doesn't cost much.”

    But no, my mother decided, 3 it was my first parade, she would 4 me a costume: the mummy(木乃伊), my favorite scary character.

    She 5 white rags(布片) and old towels and wound them 6 me, holding them in place with safety pins. Then she arranged the rags with toilet paper and tape. It took a long time, but I was still 7 enough to see the result. When she finished, I could 8 wait to look in the9 I was a mummy! I moved back and forth in front of it 10.

    “Oh, you're very scary.” my mother said.

    She drove me to school. We started our parade. The more I walked, the 11. the rags got. Then, about two blocks out, it began to 12 The next thing I knew was that the toilet paper was beginning to dissolve (溶解).13 the rags became even looser and fell to my ankles, wrists, and neck and you could see my undershirt and under pants, which made me extremely 14.

    “Look at Charley!” the other kids screamed. They were 15. I was burning red. I wanted to escape, but where did you go in the middle of a parade?

    When we 16 reached the schoolyard, I was all wet, with a mess of rags and toilet paper pieces. The parents were waiting there with 17, starting to take photos of us. I saw my mother first. As she spotted me, she 18 her hand to her mouth. I burst into19.

    “You20 my life!” I cried.

    Cleverness is a gift while kindness is a choice. Gifts are easy – they're given after all. Choice can be 1.”

    I got the idea to start Amazon 16 years ago. I came across the fact 2 the Internet usage was growing at 2,300 percent per year. I'd never seen or heard of anything that grew 3 fast, and the idea of building an online 4 with millions of titles was very exciting to me. I had just turned 30 years old, and I 5 for a year. I told my wife MacKenzie that I wanted to 6 my job and go to do this crazy thing that probably wouldn't work since most start-ups don't, and I wasn't sure 7 to expect. MacKenzie told me I 8go for it. As a young boy, I'd been a garage inventor. I'd always wanted to be a(an) 9, and she wanted me to follow my passion.

    I was working at a financial firm in New York City with a bunch of very 10 people, and I had a brilliant boss that I much admired. I went to my boss and told him I wanted to start a company selling books 11. He took me on a long walk in Central Park,12 carefully to me, and finally said, “That sounds like a really good idea, 13 it would be an even better idea for someone who didn't already have a good job.” That logic 14 to me, and he convinced me to think about it for 48 hours 15 making a final decision. Seen in that light, it really was a(an) difficult 16, but finally, I decided I had to give it a shot. I didn't think I'd regret trying and failing. And I suspected I would always be haunted （纠缠）by a decision to not17at all.

    After much consideration, I took the less 18 path to follow my 19, and I'm proud of that choice. For all of us, in the end, we are our 20.

Bradley's Bicycle

    When our son Bradley was ten, the new bicycle he had received earlier that year was missing. Having a bike was a big deal to our children. They spent hours and hours on their bikes, 1 up and down the footpath, and at the front of the house. We also rode as a 2 at holidays, when all the members enjoyed staying together. Bicycling was a great way to get the kids out of the house and into the fresh air 3 spending any money.

    Bradley discovered that his bicycle had been 4 from our backyard when he and his sister went outside for a morning ride. He couldn't 5 that someone would do this. 6, none of the other bicycles were touched and nothing else was missing.

    Bradley painted a sign (告示) on a large piece of cardboard,7 for the bicycle to be returned, and 8 it to the letterbox. The following morning, when I went out to collect the mail, I found a white 9 with the magical words, "Buy yourself a new bike." It took me a little while to 10what it was inside it. It was a $100 banknote.

    We were very 11that someone had the heart to do this. We've never been able to thank the person but we 12 that it may have been one of our wonderful neighbors. Bradley painted a big "Thank you" on the sign and we 13it outside for a couple of weeks afterwards in case it was someone who drove down our street.

    Bradley was able to 14 a new bicycle. As the years went on, bicycles became bigger and more expensive but remained just as 15 for those family bicycle rides. Now the kids have grown up and cars have 16their bicycles. Bradley is twenty-five this year. Sometimes I 17 the days when receiving a bicycle was the best thing in the world to them.

    All these years later we are still grateful to that incredibly kind 18. A young boy's sorrow turned to joy when he got his19. We were a young family with three little children and it meant a lot to us. We still talk about it and, even now, 20who actually gave us the help.