It was a very cold evening. The old man's beard was almost icy. He was waiting for a 1 across the river. The wait seemed 2. The old man sat on the ground waiting for quite a long time.

    3, he saw several horsemen coming. He watched them silently and let the first one pass by without even asking. Another passed by, and then another, till the last rider came near the old man. The old man caught the rider's 4 and said, “Sir, would you 5 giving me a ride to the other side?”

    6 his horse, the rider replied, “Of course not.” But it was so cold that the old man's body was almost 7. He could not get 8the ground. The horseman helped the old man onto his horse. He took the old man not just across the river, 9to the old man's home.

    As they 10 the old man's house, the horseman asked, “Sir, you let several other riders pass by without even asking. Then I 11 and you asked me for a ride at once. Why? 12 I had said 'no' and left you there?”

    The old man looked the rider straight in the eye, and said, “I looked 13 the eyes of the other riders. I quickly saw that they didn't 14. It would be 15 even asking them for a ride. But in your eye I saw 16. I knew that you would help me.”

    The words 17 the rider deeply. “Thank you for what you've said,” he told the old man. “I hope I will never leave others 18 simply because I'm busy, and every American citizen does 19 in my heart.”

    With that, Thomas Jefferson, the third president of the US, turned his horse around and made his 20back to the White House.

    In 1952, my daddy traveled with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. This meant he would 1 a lot of time away from home.

    As 2 came near，he called my mother and 3 why he would not be celebrating the holiday with us. Money was tight and he didn't have a way to get back to his4 .Though she was 5, mother knew he was right. When she told us the news, it really 6 me, and I went to bed on Christmas Eve with a 7 heart.

    When we 8 up on Christmas morning, Santa had come. I still remember what gift we9 that year. We were all happy with our gifts, so we went outside to play. As we were10 I looked up and thought I saw my daddy in the distance I ran inside to tell mother. She did not11 me and told me not to make up stories. My mother12 it just wasn't possible. 13 I was sure it was Daddy！I turned to go back outside when I heard familiar footsteps. Daddy was home！As I 14into his arms, daddy explained that he had tried 15to get home for Christmas, but without success. At last, a group of the workers had decided to drive. But the 16  guy lived miles away. So daddy started 17 on Christmas Eve until he arrived home. He had walked all night！

    Though the 18that year were wonderful, the best gift was not found in the19 . Daddy's special surprise made this my most20 Christmas.

    My father lived a long life and was deeply loved by his wife, three children, eleven grandchildren and a large number of friends. He was smart and quick- headed. When I asked if he'd like to join me on Virgin Airlines, I remember him 1replying: "Why not? It's as close to heaven as I'll ever get"

    While he could always make us 2 he was also quiet, considerate and full of wonderful 3for us so that we could do better.

When I was a child, I4 myself to the change in Dad's loose drawer — I didn't see it as stealing, but rather as just borrowing without a 5 to give back - and bought chocolate from our local corner shop.

One day, while6the shop with my father, the shopkeeper questioned my 7spending habits: "'Now I don't want to get him into any8, Mr Branson, but I don' t know where young Richard is getting all his 9 from. He's becoming my best customer— I 10 he isn't stealing it.”

    Dad 11 by looking her straight in the eyes and saying loudly, “Madam, how dare you12my son of stealing?”

    After we left the shop, my father never spoke a word about the 13 However, his deliberate14 for the rest of the day expressed everything. The way he 15 the situation taught me a hugely effective lesson. I learned that the power of the16 words can be frighteningly influential.

    His17 my honesty was more 18than if he had scolded me. I also learned the power of 19 and second chances. And these lessons have 20 me a lot in both life and work.

    During my second year at the city college, I was told that the education department was offering a "free" course, called Thinking Chess, for three credits. I 1the idea of taking the class because, after all, who doesn't want to 2 a few dollars? More than that, I'd always wanted to learn chess. And, even if I weren't 3enough about free credits, news about our 4was appealing enough to me. He was an international grandmaster, which 5 I would be learning from one of the game's 6. I could hardly wait to 7him.

    Maurice Ashley was kind and smart, a former graduate returning to teach, and this 8was no game for him: he meant business. In his introduction, he made it 9that our credits would be hard-earned. In order to 10the class, among other criteria, we had to write a paper on how we plan to 11what we would learn in class to our future professions and, 12, to our lives. I managed to get an A in that 13and learned life lessons that have served me well beyond the 14.

    Ten years after my chess class with Ashley, I'm still putting to use what he 15me: “The absolute most important 16that you learn when you play chess is how to make good 17. On every single move you have to 18a situation, process what your opponent(对手）is doing and 19the best move from among all your options." These words still ring true today in my 20as a journalist.

    It was Australia Day. We had spent the afternoon 1with friends. When we arrived home, the message bank on my mobile phone was flashing. It was our 2, Annabel, who had just been left at a boarding school over 500 kilometers away. Annabel's 3 voice greeted us: "Hi, Mum and Dad, I've 4 my phone!” After just four days at school her main means of 5 had gone missing at an Australia Day celebration. We realized the chance of finding the phone were 6 for we hadn't installed (安装) the Find My Phone app.

    The next morning, my mobile beeped (发出哔哔声) loudly. When I replayed the 7 a kind voice announced that she had something that 8 my daughter and could I please call her back.

Annabel had 9 my number on the inside of her phone's case —- 10 thinking! "I'll take it to work 11 you see if anyone can pick it up,” she kindly offered after I 12 that my daughter was at boarding school and I lived a six-hour drive away.

After tracking the people I 13 who lived nearby, I was out of luck —- no one was able to 14 the phone.

    Later I decided to ask our angel (天使) to post the 15 to my daughter. But to my 16, this angel, who had already spent a busy day at work, was making a two-hour round trip on a Saturday night, especially to 17 a phone to a complete stranger.

    I gave her 18 and she delivered the phone into the hands of my daughter. The only word of her explanation was: "I've got four 19 of my own. I know how a mother 20."

    Almost everything was fantastic in the nature camp except for a girl, Elizabeth. When I saw her sitting alone in the hot sun at lunch, I asked her to eat with us under a(n) 1 tree. However, Elizabeth refused my kind 2. When we invited her to play volleyball with us, Elizabeth 3 our invitation, too. After a few more 4 refusals like that, I decided to stay away from Elizabeth.

    It 5 that we were going on a nature 6 and that our instructor paired everyone up with a partner. Guess who my partner turned out to be. It was Elizabeth!

    "What do you like to do 7?" I asked, trying to make small 8 as we started out. "I like to 9 in peace and quiet," Elizabeth 10. So we had the quietest and most peaceful hike in the world 11 we saw a bird. "I think his wing is hurt. Poor little bird," Elizabeth said 12. "He might be taking a rest over there." I said. Elizabeth nodded. Then she whispered, "But what if he's in 13, like my granddad?" "Your granddad?" I said. "He 14 and broke his leg the day the camp started. He's 15 in hospital and is in so much pain," Elizabeth explained. I noticed she was 16. "I'm sorry for what I have done. For some reason, whenever I get really sad, I act 17 and want to be alone," she added.

    "I get it," I said. "I don't always know how to 18 it when I'm feeling down, either." "Thanks," she said, wiping off her tears.

    After that, Elizabeth seemed to get along well with us, and I think she actually 19 the last few days of the camp.

    Next time, if someone is unfriendly, give him a second 20. Maybe he's going through a tough time.