A long time ago there was a boy. He was smart, talented and handsome.  1, he was very selfish and his temper was so 2 that nobody wanted to be friends with him. Often he got angry and said various 3things to people around him.

    The boy's parents were very 4 about his bad temper. They considered what they could do and one day the father had an idea. He called his son and gave him a hammer and a bag of5.The father said: “Every time you get angry, take a nail and 6 it into that old fence as hard as you can.”

    The fence was very7and the hammer was heavy, nevertheless the boy was so angry that during the very first day he drove 37 nails.

    Day after day, week after week, the number of nails was gradually8. After some time, the boy started to understand that 9 his temper is easier than driving nails into the fence.

    One day the boy didn't 10 hammer and nails any more as he learned to hold his temper perfectly. So he came to his father and told about his11. “Now every time, when you hold your temper all day long,12 one nail”.

    Much time has passed. At last the boy could be13 of himself as all the nails were gone. When he came to his father and told about this, he14to come and take a careful look at the fence. “You did a good job, my son,15 pay your attention to the 16 that were left from the nails. The fence will 17 be the same. The same happens when you say hurtful things to people, as your words leave18 in their hearts like those holes in the fence. Remember, we need to 19 everyone with love and respect. It doesn't 20 that you say you are sorry, because the scars will not disappear.

    Once upon a time, there was a poor man. His 1 was also very poor—a small and empty house, which was 2 with spider webs (蜘蛛网). People tried to 3 coming into his house as they didn't want to come to such a 4 place. And the poor man thought that poverty (贫困) was the 5 for his unlucky life.

    Then, the poor man 6 a wise man and told him about his poverty. The man felt sorry for the poor man and gave him a vase. "This will save you from 7," the wise man 8. The poor man took the 9 from the wise man and wanted to 10 it at first and then spend the money on drinking, as usual. Besides, why would he 11 such a beautiful thing? But then he started 12 the vase carefully and decided not to take it to the market. He brought the vase back to his 13, put it on the table and started watching it again.

    "It's not 14 for such a beautiful thing to be 15," the poor man thought. So he 16 some flowers and put them into the vase. It became even 17. "Not good that such a beautiful thing stands next to a spider web," the poor man 18 again.

    So the poor man started 19 his house. He cleaned the dust, washed the floor and whitened the walls. And it became clear that his house wasn't poor, 20 rather warm and comfortable. And the poor man wasn't a poor man anymore, but a hard-working host, who had no time to think about poverty.

    My eight-year-old son's soccer team in Washington DC was put together several years ago. The team has won 1 one game in the last three seasons. Yet, despite the endless 2, soccer is my son's favorite activity. He plays soccer at every 3, even at break time and at the aftercare(病后护理), and although he doesn't play as well as the best players in his school, this hasn't 4 him in the least.

    This has been repeated often, but I 5 it first-hand: soccer is about friendship as much as it is about learning to control the ball and make successful 6. Watching the children, I see that winning is a distant 7 goal for them. What they enjoy is each other's presence and the fact that they're in this game 8.

    Actually, I went through a phase of giving my son suggestions such as: Why aren't you more 9 once you have the ball? He 10 my sudden torrent(滔滔不绝) of guidance. "Mom, I play midfield or defense, not forward. And 11, soccer isn't about being aggressive. It's about 12." After hearing that, I paused and 13. How strange it is that I, who never played any sport for a single day of my life, wanted my son to be a(n) 14 footballer!

    Isn't it extraordinary that kids don't necessarily 15 their attempts to have impressive results? They love the activity for itself. Becoming an adult means a gradual 16 of that spirit. To stand out or 17, people develop a spirit of competition. How often have I become 18—professionally and personally—when things haven't gone the way I wanted? I've 19 there's much to learn from soccer-loving eight-year-olds: do your best, be passionate, enjoy yourself, and then, regardless of the 20, move on.

    One of my favourite films is Mr. Bean. At a Fancy (化装)Restaurant. In the film, after being1at his table, Mr. Bean takes out a2, writes a few words on it, signs his name, puts it into an envelope and 3it on the table. After a moment, he looks at the4but this time he looks surprised, as if he did not know it was there. He opens it to find a birthday card and delightedly puts it on the table for everyone to see.

    When he looks at the5, an astonished look quickly6on his face. He takes all7out of his pockets, counts it and puts it in a saucer(碟子).He then looks from the menu to the money with 8until he finds one thing that makes him smile. He9a dish called "steak tartare." When the dish arrives, he is 10to discover that "steak tartare" is11a raw(生肉的)hamburger. He12an attempt to eat it, but it is13, from the look on his face, that he finds the taste really terrible. He cannot14his feelings, except when the waiter asks whether everything is OK. He smiles and nods,15that everything is fine.16no one is looking, however, he17himself hiding the raw meat anywhere he can18, inside a sugar bottle, a tiny flower vase and under a plate. He becomes so disappointed in the end that he19hides some inside the20of a woman sitting near him and throws some under the seat of the restaurant's violinist!

    I like to watch Mr. Bean on TV but I wouldn't want to meet someone like him in real life.

My childhood memories involve sitting with my dad in his study every night. When he came home from work, he would put his 1items away: his watch, wallet, comb and car keys which would always 2the same spot on the table.

Dad's 3was jade green. He bought it when he married Mum, which made it two years older than I was. Every night, he would smile, and hand me the comb: "Be a good girl and help Daddy 4it, OK?"

I would excitedly turn the tap on, and brush it with a used toothbrush. When I 5returned it to Dad, he would smile at me, and place it on top of his wallet.

Two years later, I started primary school. That was6Dad's business wasn't doing so well, He didn't come home as 7as he used to, and when he did, it was always late and I'd already be in bed. So the uncomfortable silence between Dad and me 8.

Now 28, I've 9from college and got a job. One day last year, Dad came home early. I helped him carry his bags into his10. When I turned to leave, he said: "Hey, would you like to help me clean my comb? It's been a while since I 11cleaned it." I looked at him a while, then took the comb, and headed to the sink. It hit me then: why, as a child, helping my dad clean his comb was such a joy. That routine meant that my dad was home early to spend the evening with Mum and me. It meant a happy and loving family. With 12in my eyes, I brushed it with an old toothbrush.

When I 13the clean comb back to him, Dad looked at it, smiling, and then carefully put it on his wallet. But this time, I had noticed something different: Dad has 14. He has wrinkles next to his eyes when he smiles, yet his smile is still as 15as before.

I was so excited when Mrs. Burks announced we were going to the skating rink (溜冰场). I'd never been roller-skating and really wanted to learn how to skate. 

When we got there, everyone 1 inside. Some of us rented our skates and soon began lacing (系好鞋带) them up. Then, everyone but me 2 away from the wall and started skating.

3 onto the handrail (扶手), I pulled myself along the side as I tried moving my legs back and forth. After a few failed 4 , Mrs. Burks skated over to me.

"When you start to 5 , relax. If you struggle to keep from falling, you'll be more 6 to hurt yourself," said Mrs. Burks.

Mrs. Burks 7 for one of my hands. I took a deep breath and 8 her by the hand. As we moved away from the wall, she called out, "Get your 9 . Move your foot forward at an angle and then do the 10 thing with the other foot."

I tried to follow her 11 in every way. "That's good! You're moving your feet like you should. But remember to relax when you start to go down. Let's try again," Mrs. Burks said.

So I did. When I began losing my balance, I crumpled (倒下) to the floor, 12 . Mrs. Burks was right! It didn't 13 as much. I was able to get up faster and try again. 

Later I began to see how Mrs. Burks' guidance worked for other 14 . As long as I kept trying to do my best , I could learn something even when I 15 in those dark moments of my life. I could get back up, try again, and trust someone would be there to help me.