There is a workman in America who earns as much as a company director. He is Max Quarterman, a thirty-year-old plasterer (泥瓦匠).

    Max lives in an upper middle-class housing estate. His 1 are mostly bank managers, business executives, airline pilots and the 2, but Max's seven-bedroom house — 3 $ 80,000 — is the largest in the area. 4 outside the house are Max's $ 7000 sports car and his wife's Morris Mini. Indoors is a 150 colour TV set and the family's 5 — a circular bath with gold-plated taps. There are also many labour－saving 6 and luxury furniture.

    How can a plasterer 7 all this? The answer, says Max, is hard work. In 8 with another plasterer, Max 9 contract plastering jobs for a firm. The owner of the firm 10 them as human machines, the best and quickest in the 11, who can do as much in two days as 12 two-man team can in two weeks.

    How do they manage it? Not by working overtime. They work a(n) 13 eight-hour day, five days a week. The secret 14 in Max's hod (桶) in which he carries the plaster to the site of the job. Max's is a superhod — it contains double the usual 15 of plaster, and Max, a strong fellow, runs when he carries it. More time is thus 16 to get on with the plastering. Besides, 17 man wastes time smoking, and they 18 their lunch break to a 19 of an hour a day. Now Max earns over $ 800 a week which is four times the average weekly pay in Britain today, and if he gets as 20 as $ 15, it's a disaster.

    When I was 13 my only purpose was to become the star on our football team. That meant 1 Miller King, who was the best 2 at our school.

    Football season started in September and all summer long I worked out. I carried my football everywhere for 3.

    Just before September, Miller was struck by a car and lost his right arm. I went to see him after he came back from 4.He looked very 5,but he didn't cry.

    That season, I 6 all of Miller's records while he 7 the home games from the bench. We went 10-1 and I was named most valuable player,8 I often had crazy dreams in which I was to blame for Miller's 9.

    One afternoon ,I was crossing the field to go home and saw Miller 10 going over a fence-which wasn't 11 to climb if you had both arms. I'm sure I was the last person in the world he wanted to accept 12 from. But even that challenge he accepted. I 13 him move slowly over the fence. When we were finally 14 on the other side, he said to me, “You know, I didn't tell you this during the season, but you did 15.Thank you for filling in for 16.”

    His words freed me from my bad 17.I thought to myself, how even without an arm he was more of a leader. Damaged but not defeated, he was 18 ahead of me. I was right to have 19 him. From that day on, I grew 20 and a little more real.

    My previous home had a stand of woods behind it and many animals in the backyard. That first year, I1 feeding peanuts to the blue jays, then the squirrels. The squirrels had no2 coming up right to me for them. As the months went by, the rabbits saw that I was no 3and didn't escape. When I threw carrot slices(薄片)，they even came for a nibble(啃).Slowly they came to4 me, and by the end of the year they were eating out of my hand.

    That second year, the rabbits5 me, and one would even sit up for slices! While I was feeding them, I 6 that a groundhog who used to run away was now taking an7interest in this food situation. I carefully extended a long8, with a keen eye on those teeth, and 9,there were times I would have the groundhog sitting next to a rabbit, both munching(津津有味的咀嚼) on carrots. A few months later, while 10,she would even turn her back to me.11when she was facing away, I reached out and 12scratched（搔）her back with my finger, She didn't move.

    By year three, the rabbits and the groundhog were back. The groundhog 13didn't have a problem with me scratching her back, and I got an idea, I'd always14,while slicing up carrots, that the end looked like a cap.15one day, just to see what she would do ,I gently 16 one on top of the groundhog's head. Again, not a 17,The next time, I had my camera ready to record what you see here, one of several dozen such pictures,18she had a slice to eat, she never 19 the one of her head. It was a fair 20 —I got a pleasure, and she had yet another tasty treat.

    Last week, Nicole Shen received a package from Amazon containing goods she had requested. She also found keys and an employee ID that had mistakenly found their way into her 1. At the sight of them, she knew she needed to get the 2 items back to their owner.

    After a little 3on social media, Nicole found out that they4Amazon employee Kenneth Delerme, who5 placed them in the box of items sent to Shen's Richmond, Texas home, about 150 miles away. Without his6, Kenneth had his car towed(拖) and was forced to sleep at a friend's apartment. So when Shen7to him explaining she had found his lost possessions, he was understandably 8. Throughout the course of their9on social media, Kenneth noticed people suggesting that he “swab(抽取血液样本)” as a way to10 Nicole. It was at that time that he got to know that Shen's 3-year-old son Roman. was diagnosed with a rare disease and was11 a bone marrow match(匹配的骨髓).

    In Roman's12, it means he can't produce white blood cells on his own. That means even a cold could 13 him. Therefore, the Shen family has been 14 a bone marrow match for Roman.

    Eager to 15, Knneth agreed to get swabbed and16persuaded several family members and friends to help as well. “All my friends and family are 17to help Roman or other people that need bone marrow,” he said.

    For Shen, this proves that despite the serious illness, the community isn't18 to help. And despite some cheats of social media, this story serves as yet another 19of how it can be used to do good and even save lives. Anyway, one good turn20 another.

    I remember how hard the rain was in New York City one morning. It was as if pebbles(鹅卵石) were 1 from the sky. I was walking to the 2 and saw a little girl huddling（蜷缩）under her mom's arms, doing her best not to get 3. Our eyes met as her mom asked her to 4 as the light was about to turn red for them to walk across the street.

    I was feeling 5 and all of a sudden the rain was a shower of help as opposed to a problem. I offered my 6 to them and they were so overcome with the 7 that the mom offered me money. I 8 and said, “You just 9 the umbrella and give the money to your daughter 10she gets good grades.” The little girl 11 up and down and 12 her mom to take the umbrella. She did and we smiled. I told them to have a good dry 13 and I walked into the supermarket.

    I found the few goods that I needed and went to the checkout counter. But I noticed that the 14 was the longest I had ever seen. The woman who was next 15 that I had just a few items and 16 her place. I smiled and thanked her. I 17 my items and went home 18- and cooked one of the best breakfasts for myself as I watched the beautiful blessings of rain outside my 19. I love kindness; I will take and receive 20 everywhere I go.

    The day when I would go off to college was around the corner. Mom stood me in her usual spot behind the ironing board(烫衣板) and said, "Pay attention: I'm going to teach you to iron."

    Mom clearly explained her 1 for this lesson. I was going to be 2 and needed to learn this 3 skill. Also, I would be meeting new people, and properly ironed clothes would help me make a good 4."Learn to iron a shirt," Mom said, "and you can iron 5."

    But ironing shirts was not 6 work. It didn't make use 7long muscles we used to throw a baseball, and it wasn't a 8 operation like ice­skating. Ironing was like driving a car on a street that has a stop 9 every 10 feet. What's more, an iron produced steam and it carried a possibility of 10.If you touched the wrong part of it, you'd get 11. If you forgot to turn it off when you 12, you might burn down the house.

    As for technique, Mom 13 me to begin it, 14  sounded easy but skilful .Mom said it looked very simple ,but you must do it with your15 .Over the years, I've learned to iron shirts skillfully, which gives me a sense of 16.

    17 failures I suffer in my life, an ironed shirt tells me I am good at something. 18, through ironing I've learned how to find out the 19 to working out even the most troublesome problems."20 wrinkles one at a time," as Mom might have said, "and before long everything will get ironed out."