I often read of incidents of misunderstanding or conflict. I'm left 1. Why do these people create mistrust and problems, especially with those from other 2?

I was growing up in Kuala Lumpur in the early 1960s,3children from different races and religions played and studied4in harmony. At that time my family lived a stone's5from Ismail's. And no one was bothered that Ismail was a Malay Muslim and I was an Indian Hindu—we just6our differences. Perhaps, our elders had not filled our heads with unnecessary advice, well7or otherwise.

We were nine when we became friends. During the school holidays, we'd8the countryside on our bicycles, hoping to9the unexpected. At times Ismail would accompany my family as we made a rare shopping trip to town. We would be glad of his10

When I was twelve, my family moved to Johor. Ismail's family later returned to their village, and I11touch with him.

    One spring afternoon in 1983, I stopped a taxi in Kuala Lumpur. I12my destination. The driver acknowledged my13but did not move off. Instead, he looked14at me. “Raddar?” he said, using my childhood nickname(绰号). I was astonished at being so15addressed (称呼). Unexpectedly! It was Ismail! Even after two16we still recognized each other. Grasping his shoulder, I felt a true affection, something17to describe.

If we can allow our children to be18without prejudice, they'll build friendships with people, regardless of race or religion, who will be19their side through thick and thin. On such friendships are societies built and20we can truly be, as William Shakespeare once wrote, “we happy few, we band of brothers”.

    We1hamburgers and Coca Cola at the counter. When our2came, I started walking towards an empty table. By bad luck, my purse strap(带子)got 3 on a chair and the tray(托盘)that I was holding slipped4my hands and went flying in the air. The tray, and its contents,5on a man who was just about to6a bite of his sandwich. I stared, greatly 7, as the drinks soaked(浸湿)his white shirt.

    Then I8my eyes and prepared myself for his burst of9. Instead, he said “It's OK” to10me before he disappeared into washroom.

    Still shaky and unsure11to do next, my friends and I went to a table and sat there, trying our best to look12. A moment later, the man came out of the washroom and13our table. My heart almost stopped14. I thought he was going to ask for my father's15and call him.

    To my surprise, he merely smiled at us, handed us some cash and said, “16yourself new hamburgers. ”He then walked17without even finishing his food.

    He could have made what was already an uncomfortable situation worse,18he chose a different way and gave us a reason to believe that there is still19in this world. I'll never20his actions.

    In the early days of reality television（电视真人秀）,I would get emails about competitions . In 2005, one arrived named Country Pub .It offered a(n)1 for couples to compete to run a pub.

    My partner, Monica, and I filled in the 2, and luckily we were invited to a filmed interview,But at Christmas I got a call saying we weren't going to be 3 and would be kept on the reserve list .We forgot all about it. 4 a few months later we were told the first couple had5 out and they wanted us to step in.

    On voting night, we won after a close game. But the producer told me the lease （租约）, in fact,6 to someone else. Towards the end of filming, we were 7 with a contract（合同）offering us 8 as pub managers for salary of £18,000. We wanted it so badly that we 9 .

    The show called Nobody's Inn was 10 on ITV several months later, in June 2006. Many people 11 it, which made the pub more popular .

    However, the leaseholder never wanted us there at all. 12, we conflicted . He sent me to work behind the 13 at another of his places. Seven months later, we 14 . At the locals in Plymouth saw us off and some 15 couldn't hold back tears.

    By then, we had found somewhere else and 16 there at Christmas 2006. It was everything we wanted the 17 experience to be: we even won a Campaign for Real Ale award. In 2009, we moved to Monica's village. Nowadays we still run it, and keep in touch with some of the 18 from Plymouth.

    The dream we were chasing might have gone 19, but we wouldn't be where we are now20 a few months behind the bar of Nobody's Inn.

    I used to hate running. It seemed too hard, and expanding my comfort zone was not something I like. In fact, I wouldn't have become a runner if it weren't for my husband Charles. He had been a serious competitive 1 for many years. After our marriage, he wouldn't stop talking about how much he 2 it. So he picked it up again, and after about a year, I started to 3 him at the track. Just a few weeks later, Charles signed us 4 up for a five-kilometer race. I 5 about doing it because it was too soon.

    The 6 sent a signal. Thousands of runners pushed forward. The first kilometer was 7. I was already breathing heavily and painfully aware of the group of runners 8 me. Charles was trying to 9 me, to get me focused on something 10my discomfort.

    After another minute I saw the three-kilometer 11. "Painful" couldn't 12describe how I felt. And there was pain, so much pain. I rounded a 13, and saw both sides of the street 14 with people watching the race, all 15 the runners up. I tried to keep my 16 going. I knew that if I actually 17 this race I would have achieved something. So, I 18 up and went on.

    Finally I passed through the finish line. A volunteer put a medal around my neck. I 19 held my medal, walking to the post-race celebrations with Charles. My lungs and my 20 zone both expanded.

    Three years ago, when I entered my school for the first time, I was welcomed by students wearing white shirts with a badge (徽章) saying "Prefect" on them, who greeted me with the1"Welcome to Huaxia Middle School". I was immediately impressed and2 I could be one of them. Then next year, in the summer of 2016, my wish3 when I was selected to be a prefect. Just like the ones4 me, I was to stand at the school gate and 5 new freshmen.

    So, you may wonder, what 6 is a prefect? Prefects are student leaders in our school. They're usually top students7 from higher grades to help teachers run the school 8 of the classroom9 you're chosen to be a prefect, you need to be a nearly perfect student. Becoming a prefect wasn't10 for me. I used to be sensitive and 11 caring too much about what others thought of me. But since I was12 to become a prefect, I tried my best to be more brave and hardworking, making rapid13in a year.

    The biggest benefit of being a prefect is that it teaches me to be14 and set an example for lower grade students. I was a member of the school soccer team, but I wasn't a good 15 and felt embarrassed about my poor 16. After having some students from lower grades join our team, however, I knew that I had to set a good example. So, I kept practicing my skills and 17 greatly.

Being a prefect doesn't 18 mean I have a badge on my shirt. It also means that I have a hardworking attitude deep in my19"You can make it," I always remind myself. Becoming a prefect has20 me to work harder and become an even better person.

    I began to do volunteer work in grade seven. I experienced many meaningful moments, and the most1ones were when I was volunteering as a swimming2at the YMCA in Brockton, Massachusetts. At first, I was a teacher's3."What are we going to do next? "When is the play time? These were just two of the questions I was often4there. On the day of my first class, I thought it was going to be a(n) 5 job. I 6that since I had taken swimming lessons from the age of five, I knew the7about swimming. After all, I was good at all8of swimming! 9, I soon found out there was more about teaching swimming than just knowing how to swim.

    During my first class, I assisted the swimming teacher in teaching a group of five-year-old kids. From that moment on, my10of teaching changed. Teaching is communicating. To instruct children, one has to make the lessons11 and interesting for them to learn. I had to learn many games that would help the children to 12as swimmers. Such as "Red Light, Green Light" and "Blast-Off." I must devote myself to teaching them and set a(n)13example to them.

    I expected to teach a group of children, but it14my students were the ones who taught me how to be a(n)15teacher. Not only was it challenging to learn the children's names, but it was also challenging to16to their many personalities and moods. There were many 17that went along with helping these children, among which was seeing a child18a task that he or she could not do before they met me.19, through the volunteer work, I learned that there would always be rewards by giving, and there would be20by making efforts.