Eight years ago, when Kyle Amber was five years old, he came face-to-face with a huge problem: His brother, Ian, ten, was diagnosed with leukemia(白血病). Their parents, Laurie and Henry, were spending much of their1with him in hospital. Kyle often felt alone and 2

    What could a kindergartner do? Not much, it seemed.3, Kyle was determined. He looked around and saw lots of kids being4for cancer and decided he could help them by helping the hospital, which was trying to5money for bone-marrow(骨髓)transplant.

    But how? Since Kyle's grandfather was in the printing business, he6bring decorative cards for Kyle, who7with the idea of selling them8. He made a large sum of momey-$80-for the hospital. His next9was a candy sale at this school, Palmetto Elementary, and it has turned into an annual10.

    And then people in Miami read about his efforts and were inspired to11to donate more money and toys, and things just snowballed.

    Within a year Kyle's idea turned into an official fund-raising organization called Kids That Care Cancer Fund. Today it is one of the12organizations in the country run by kids and13kids. It's hard to estimate just14the group has collected, says Laurie, but it is more than $100,000. As the Mayor of Miami wrote to Kyle, “ Your efforts have made a remarkable15in the lives of many suffering from this disease.”

    Never once has Kyle thought of16, because the smiles of the kids are too important. “ Basically, the entire feeling that you get is very17,” he explains. Helping other kids has taught him to be less18. And there's another thing he learns for sure: “ There is19going to be a time when you're going to have a very hard barrier,” he says. “20you overcome that, you can do anything.”

    When Mrs. Green told her pupils to draw a picture of something for which they were thankful, she thought how little these children in a(an)1neighborhood, had to be2 for. Most of the 3 would draw pictures of turkeys (火鸡) or of Thanksgiving tables full of everything4 to eat. That was what they believed was 5 them.

    What made Mrs. Green 6 was David's picture. David was so disappointed and likely to be 7 close in his shadow as they went outside for breaks. David's drawing was8 this:

    A hand, whose hand? The class was strongly attracted by his image. “I think it must be the 9 of God10us food,” said one student,

    “A 11 said another, “because they 12 the turkeys.”

    “It looks more like a policeman, and they13 us.” “1 think,” Lucy said 14 “that it is 15 to be all the hands that help us, but David could only draw one of them.”

    Mrs. Green had almost forgotten David in her16at finding the class so responsive(共鸣的). Having the others working on another project, she bent over his 17and asked whose hand it was.

    David whispered, “It's yours, Teacher.”

    Then Mrs. Green 18 she had taken David by the hand from time to time; she often did that with the children. But that it should have19 so much to David . . .

    Perhaps, she thought this was her Thanksgiving, and everybody's Thanksgiving—not the things given to us, but the small 20 that we give something to others.

    On a recent sunny, dry fall morning, I found the last outdoor table at my favorite café. Reading 1 I nibbled my breakfast, I was enjoying the feeling of the cool breeze and the warm sun when a table next to me 2. A woman who had been standing nearby, 3 waiting for a seat, stepped toward the table. But from the other 4, straight from the parking lot, came a man who got to the table first.

    The woman, with a 5 on her face, explained that she'd been 6 that table for several minutes and had been on her way over. The man, also smiling but 7, told her she was out of 8; he had happened upon the table first. "You snooze, you lose!" he said cheerfully.

    She stood off to the side, clearly disappointed, and 9 her friend with the frustrating news. I sat at my table, 10 the scene, when suddenly it occurred to me—I had a(n) 11 here to be kind.

    I stood up and 12 her over to my table. Quietly, I told her I had seen what had happened, and I was happy to give her my table. I was only going to be there a few more minutes 13, so I was happy for her and her friend to have the 14.

    "But where will you sit?" she asked. I was almost done eating, I said, and I would find a seat at the counter 15. She thanked me and beamed as she 16 for her friend to sit down.

    Thinking about it as I finished up, I realized that whether or not the woman had fair 17 to the table was unimportant. The emotion of the situation—the look of hurt on her face—had 18 me, and I had the ability to do something about it.

    That isn't always the case with every feeling, situation, or injustice we 19 unexpectedly in our days. But as the early 20th century writer Orison Swett Marden once said, "Don't wait for extraordinary opportunities. 20 common occasions and make them great."

    I just hope that woman's morning at the café was great. I know mine was.

    I was a lovely child with a loving family. I was not a (n) 1, but a leader in school. But what made me special was not seen from the outside: I was 2 about life. My best character was my personality.

    At age twelve, my life had a breakdown. It was then that I developed OCD (强迫症). I was no longer the 3 girl. I finally told my mother I was suffering from depression. I started taking medicine. 4, the medicine did help. But one thing didn't 5: I still was overwhelmed with depression. I still was 6 sad and I started to believe that my life no longer 7.

    Thinking my life no longer had 8, I decided suicide was the solution. I wrote a note to all my friends and family, expressing I was 9 for leaving them. As I was folding the note, my eyes fell on a photograph. It was a little girl wearing a carefree smile.

    It took me a few minutes to 10 who the girl in the photo was. I 11 couldn't believe that smiling child was me! It seemed my younger self had sent me a 12. Right then and there I knew I couldn't 13 myself. Once I had been a strong girl, and I had to be like that again. I swore I wouldn't only 14 my medicine. I would fight the depression with my 15, too.

    It's been two years 16 I recovered. The real reason I'm 17 is that I refused to let depression 18 my life. I learned a lifelong 19: Never give up. Life is good. Everyone has 20 in life, but everyone can survive. I am living proof of that.

    In 2009 we were staying at our cousin's house in Triora, Italy. Settled just above a window was a bird's nest which my 1 said had been there for many years. Each year, different families of starlings (椋鸟) came back to make it their 2.

    We knew they were 3 because the chattering (鸣叫) of six newly hatched chicks 4us early every morning. Standing on a chair, I 5 to look into their nest. The first time I looked, the chicks were 6 and almost featherless. Their parents 7 backwards and forwards, bringing food to 8 their hungry and noisy chicks.

    Being 9 parents, whenever they saw me they screamed and flew at the window. So I could only 10 the chicks when they weren't around.

    11 the chicks were only a few days old, I realized the parents were teaching their young to fly. One brave chick beat its wings a few times and then 12 across the street landing on the roof of the house 13. Well done, I thought. The next day, my husband and I left for a tour and I was 14, thinking of how I would miss the rest taking their first 15.

    Two weeks later, on our 16, the first thing I did was look in the nest. It was 17. Then, suddenly, I head the beating of 18 and all eight of them were flying toward me. They 19a semicircle, singing to me. I felt as though they were saying, “Thank you for not harming us.” Then they flew off 20 into the blue sky.