Bert Manson, 82, slowly opened his eyes and turned to face the clock on the bedside table. It was 8:23 a.m. He felt 1. The time was nothing to him. He had nothing to do all day. He lay on the bed, 2 to the cars on the highway and the shouts of the children running to school.

After a while, Bert3 got out of bed and asked himself the same questions as he did every morning: Would he fall today? If so, would anyone come? How long would he 4? Would he die? He looked out of the window into the street below. “And who would 5?”he spoke quietly.

After Bert's wife died a year ago, his son and daughter said they would visit once a week. But the last time was months ago. On the phone, they always had a(n) 6: too busy at work; the children are 7; bad weather; no time. Nobody seemed to have any time…except for Bert. He8 his granddaughters. He loved it when Mandy and Ruth came to visit. They brought him candy and 9.

He walked toa chair near the bedroom door 10. He rested for a moment before continuing in small steps to the bathroom.

    A long time ago，there was a king in India．The king's 1 game was chess．

    One day，a wise old man 2 to the palace and the king challenged him to 3 game．The king promised the old man．"You can4 any prize if you win the game．"

    The old man5 ， "If I win the game，I'd like one grain of6for the first square of the chessboard，two for the second，four for the 7 ， and then double the amount for each of the 8of the squares．"

    "Is that all？"asked the king，"Wouldn't you like gold or silver9？"

    "No，just rice．"replied the old man．

    The king and the old man played the game 10  a long time．Finally，the old man won．11  the king ordered his men to collect a bag of rice．He12  one grain on the first square，two on the second，and so on．The king quickly realized the13—even with all the rice in the country，he would14  not have enough rice to put on all the 15 ．

    It's Sunday afternoon. It's my son's eighth birthday today. I go into a 1shop to buy a big birthday cake for him.

    There are lots of people in the shop. When I am 2 a cake, I find a little boy watching the cakes for a long time. He is 3old clothes. At last he chooses a cake. Then he gives money to the shopkeeper and says to her, “I want the 4 cake.”

    “Sorry, the cake is 20 yuan, but you only have 10 yuan,” says the shopkeeper.

    “I ...I have no more money,” says the little boy and he begins to cry.

    “Oh, my boy. Who would you like to 5 the birthday cake for?” I ask.

    “My mum, madam.”

    “6 doesn't she come and buy one?”

    “My father left us three years ago,” the boy says. “We don't have much7. My mother has to 8 from morning to night every day. She celebrates my birthday every year, but she 9 celebrates hers. It's her birthday tomorrow. I want to buy a small cake for her. But I don't have enough money...”

    “Oh, my boy! I'm your 10 friend,” I say. “I will buy her a nice birthday cake.” I give the money to the shopkeeper and leave the shop.

    I lived in a poor family with my wonderful mother. She often told me that no matter how poor a person was, he could still afford a dream.

    My dream was athletics. When I was sixteen, I started playing baseball. I could throw a ninety-mile-per-hour fastball and1anything that moved on the field.I was also2: my high school coach was John, who believed in me and taught me how to believe in myself. He taught me the difference 3having a dream and remaining true to that dream. One unusual4with Coach John changed my life forever.

    A friend helped me to find a summer job. This meant a chance for money in my pocket for a new bike, new clothes and the5of saving for a house for my mother. Then I realized I would have to6up summer baseball and that meant I would have to tell John I wouldn't be playing.

    When I told John, he was7as I expected him to be. "You have your whole life to work," he said. "You don't have too many playing days in your life. You can't afford to waste them." I stood before him with my head8, trying to think of the9that would explain to him why my dream of buying my mom a house and having money in my pocket was worth facing his disappointment in me.

    "How much are you going to make at this job, son?" he asked. "3.5 dollars an hour," I replied.

    "Well," he asked, "Is $ 3.5 an hour the price of a dream?"

    That simple question made me understand the difference between wanting something right now and having a goal. I decided myself to play sports that summer and within the year I was taken on by the Pittsburgh Pirates to play baseball, and was10 a $ 20 000 agreement. Two years later, I bought my mother the house of my dream!

    Last autumn, my 80-year-old grandmother was having problems with her heart. My family sent her to the1.

After a careful examination, a famous doctor told my grandmother, "You have such a2 heart condition that you should have an operation."

    "But the complications (并发症) can happen." the doctor3my grandmother and looked at her worried face.

The doctor went on to say that she would have a 40 percent possibility of having a heart trouble 4the operation, a 35 percent possibility of being unable to stand up, and even 20 percent of5on the operating table because of her old age.

    My grandmother was terribly surprised and quickly said, "Doctor, since you're talking about these 6, I have one for you: there is a 100 percent possibility that you won't operate on me!"

    7these words, my grandmother got up and8the doctor's office.

    The next day, my grandmother went to9doctor's office. There she was also told she needed an 10. The doctor also said that her11might cause some problems. 12 he was quite sure about the success of operation.

    My grandmother might be brave, but she is not silly. She then asked the doctor, "If I am your mother, what will you13?"

    The doctor walked up to her, smiled, put his arms14her, and said, "Mom, let's have the operation!"

    My grandmother had the operation and came out15! Her positive attitude (乐观的心态) added many wonderful and happy years for her and enjoy living with my family.

    A first-grade student whose best friend is fighting against cancer thought that hours of playing and telling jokes was not enough-he just wanted to show his buddy(伙伴) how he understood the 1 time he was going through.

    Seven-year-old Vincent Butterfield 2 to cut off his hair in support of his best friend Zac who lost his hair through chemotherapy(化疗).

    Zac is receiving treatment but 3 goes to Union Central Elementary School in Missouri every day, 4 that's where he gets to play on the swings with Vincent. Vincent found out that Zac might 5 his hair because of the chemotherapy treatment. So one day, he showed up in the first grade class wearing a 6. He said to his teacher Mrs. Koester, "I have a surprise for Zac." And he pulled off his cap and other 7 saw that he already had all his hair 8 off.

"I did it just to make Zac feel he's not the only one without any 9." said Vincent.

    Vincent has also been raising money for his best friend after learning how 10 his chemotherapy treatments are. He asked his mother to make11 than 20 scarves and gloves. He and his mother 12 them at the price of 10 dollars each, raising over $200 for Zac. The encouragement from Vincent seems to be working. Though Zac is receiving treatments, he has 13 missed any days of school. He knows that Vincent is out in the playground, waiting for him at break.

When asked 14 friendship was, Vincent looked at his friend Zac, thought for a(an) 15 and replied, "It's a beautiful thing."

Clearly, wisdom doesn't always come with age.